FGCU WTEN vs Liberty Recap

Down 3-1 at one point, the FGCU women's tennis team (6-6, 1-1 A-SUN) rallied back to down Liberty (7-6, 0-1 A-SUN), 4-3, Sunday afternoon at the FGCU Tennis Complex.

"Today's conference match was a battle and Liberty is a very solid team," said head coach Courtney Vernon. "The ladies are growing each time we go out and compete and we're looking forward to getting back to work."

It was a competitive battle right from the beginning starting with doubles play. FGCU picked up the first win on court No. 3 as the pairing of sophomore Sara Kelly and senior Patricia Villar registered a 6-3 victory. Liberty though collected the next two wins, producing a pair of 7-6 decisions over the Green and Blue.

In singles action, the Flames took a 2-0 lead after a win on court No. 6, but senior Julia Ascúa gave FGCU its first point with a straight-set win (6-4, 6-3) on court No. 3. The visitors jumped ahead by two (3-1), claiming court No. 2 but it would be their last point of the afternoon and the start of the Eagles' comeback.

Junior Maja Ornberg downed her counterpart 7-5, 6-3, moving her record to 8-4 overall on the premier court. Shortly after, senior Villar fought back after a 6-1 first set loss, only to win her next two sets 6-1, 6-2. With the match all knotted at 3-3, everyone's attention turned to court No. 4 where junior Sofia Perez was in a third-set battle.

The Costa Rica native fell in her first set 6-4 but forced another game with a 6-3 second set victory. Behind 1-2 in the final set, Perez mounted a furious comeback as she saw her opponent's return shot go beyond the line, completing FGCU's come-from-behind 4-3 win.

It's the second time Perez has clinched a match for the Eagles this season. Against Houston (Fe. 15) on the road, she claimed a 6-1 win in the third set, also giving FGCU a 4-3 triumph.

Singles competition
1. Maja Ornberg (FGCU) def. Ashley Bongart (LIBERTY) 7-5, 6-3
2. Kalani Soli (LIBERTY) def. Sara Kelly (FGCU) 7-6 (7-1), 6-0
3. Julia Ascúa (FGCU) def. Lara Soares (LIBERTY) 6-4, 6-3
4. Sofia Perez (FGCU) def. Maria Medina (LIBERTY) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
5. Patricia Villar (FGCU) def. Grace Hashiguchi (LIBERTY) 2-6, 6-1, 6-2
6. Anna Dollar (LIBERTY) def. Laura Falceto-Font (FGCU) 6-4, 6-0
Order of finish: Singles (6,3,2,1,5,4)

Doubles competition
1. Lara Soares/Maria Medina (LIBERTY) def. Maja Ornberg/Julia Ascúa (FGCU) 7-6 (7-5)
2. Grace Hashiguchi/Kalani Soli (LIBERTY) def. Madison Gallegos/Sofia Perez (FGCU) 7-6 (7-3)
3. Sara Kelly/Patricia Villar (FGCU) def. Anna Dollar/Ashley Bongart (LIBERTY) 6-3
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1)

Up Next:
FGCU will face its second Big 10 opponent this season, taking on Wisconsin (10-2) at 5 p.m. Wednesday at the FGCU Tennis Complex. The Badgers are on a three-match win streak as they are off to a 3-0 in Big 10 action.