Bears Battle Past Wofford In SoCon Quarterfinals

Thursday, April 18

Chattanooga, Tenn.

10 a.m.

Mercer University

Wofford

Bears Battle Past Wofford In SoCon Quarterfinals

4/18/2024 4:03:00 PM | Women's Tennis

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By: Brian Magnus, magnus_bt@mercer.edu

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Mercer's tandem of Teodora Ristic and Marina de Diego Quinones used a 7-5 tiebreaker to clinch what would turn out to be a key doubles point for fifth-seeded Mercer as the Bears toughed out a 4-2 win over fourth-seeded Wofford in the quarterfinal round of the 2024 Southern Conference Championships on Thursday.

The result gave Mercer (14-7) its 14^th victory of the season and marked the most wins by the program in more then 1-1/2 decades. The Bears will now advance through to Friday's semifinal round at The Champions Club in Chattanooga, Tenn., where they will take on top-seeded East Tennessee State (15-7). Start time has been slated for 10 a.m.

Thursday's setback snapped a three-match win streak for the Terriers (14-7) who handed the short-handed Bears a 5-2 defeat on March 29 in Spartanburg, S.C.

Mariella Minetti and Tea Zivic made quick work of Wofford's duo of Catherine Blouin and Emely Kahrs at No. 3 doubles, but Wofford evened things up eight minutes later when Grace Agster and Lily Wood finished off a 6-3 win on Court No. 1. Ristic and de Diego Quinones emerged with the doubles point for the Bears nearly 30 minutes later, however.

Wofford evened things up on the team scoreboard just 31 minutes into singles competition thanks to a 6-1, 6-1 win for Lily Woods on Court No. 3, and things remained tight the rest of the way out. Lea Falentin swung the lead back to the Orange & Black with a 7-6 (7-3), 7-5 victory at No. 2 singles, only to have the Terriers even things back up 15 minutes later thanks to Blouin's win on Court No. 6.

Minetti would turn the momentum for good, however, when she used the momentum from a tiebreak victory in her opening set with Grace Agster at No. 5 singles to bring MU to the cusp of a team win with a dominant 6-2 second set.

Ristic had little trouble in tacking up a 6-3 victory over Breda Brennan in her opening set on Court No. 1, but the Wofford junior bounced back with an equally-as-impressive 6-2 triumph in the second set. Undeterred, however, Ristic captured four-straight games in the third set to rally back from an early 3-1 deficit and win, 6-4.