FGCU WTEN vs Minnesota Recap

The FGCU women’s tennis team (4-5) were able to get themselves together as they defeated Power 5 Conference member Minnesota (9-5) 4-3.

"I am so proud of this group of strong women," said head coach Courtney Vernon. "They had a lot of courage today and it showed. They stayed mentally focused and they went for it in the important moments. We will grow together from the match today and we look forward to playing again tomorrow."

"We had our opportunities and we had our chances, but we just couldn't finish it," Minnesota head coach Catrina Thompson said. "The girls competed well, but it's just a process. We need to keep working on executing when we have opportunities."

Beginning with doubles, the duo of junior Julia Ascua and sophomore Maja Ornberg fell to junior Caitlyn Merzbacher and senior Mehvish Safdar by a score of 4-6.

The Eagles were able to tie the matchup after senior Julianna Curtis and junior Laura Falceto Font defeated sophomore Tina Kreinis and junior Annemarie Emme 6-3, but the Gophers were able to secure the third match and the doubles point as freshman Madison Gallegos and junior Patricia Villar fell 5-7 to freshman River Hart and senior Caroline Ryba.

"We did another good job with No.1 doubles leading the way, and with Caroline and River finishing the job in No. 3," Thompson said. "We felt really good going into singles."

Going into the singles matches, Ascua would start with a 7-6, 6-4 win over Ryba to tie the matchup. The Gophers would then retake back the lead as Villar fell 3-6, 4-6 to Merzbacher.

With the score 2-1 in favor of the Gophers, sophomore Sofia Perez was able to retie the matchup as she defeated sophomore Cammy Frei 6-3, 5-7, 6-2.

Ornberg would then give the Eagles the lead as the former A-SUN Freshman of the Year defeated Ryba 3-6, 6-3, 6-0.

"I'm really happy with how I played. I started kind of like so-so and then I really got it together and I played really well in the end," said Ornberg.

Coming down to the final two matches, Falceto Font and Gallegos continued to fight until the big ending happened.

Falceto Font fell 3-6, 7-5, 6-7 (4-7) to junior Barbara Mancera, but at the same time, Gallegos, who gave FGCU the win against FAU at the beginning of the season, managed to seal the deal with a 6-4, 5-7, 7-5 win over Emme.

"I thought her opponent (Falceto Font) really brought her best game in the third set, but Bita (Mancera) went after it and finished it well," Thompson said.

"It feels crazy. I went crazy at the end, but the whole match, I was focused on coach [Vernon] and I was focused on her and I communicating, and when the girls finished and they came over to the court, it was amazing. I fought for everything," said Gallegos. "Honestly, I thought Lau [Falceto Font] and I both had to win in order to get the match, so I was completely zoned in on cheering for her, and it helped me to keep my energy up, but it was really cool to hear that we won, even though Lau came a little bit short."

This was the first time FGCU got a win against a Power 5 Conference team since the 2014 season (Iowa State 6-1, January 17, 2014). With the win over Minnesota, the Eagles are now 1-2 overall.

"It gave us all confidence for us to see that we can do this, and that win gave us confidence and strength," said Ornberg on winning against a Power 5 team.

The Eagles return to action at home as they face Notre Dame on Tuesday, March 13 at 5 P.M.