Franciscan 5, Grove City 2

STEUBENVILLE 

  In a festive match filled with food and prizes, the Barons defeated the Grove City Wolverines in a sound 5-2 victory. It was a sunny afternoon at Belleview Park, with uncertain winds changing the temperature every minute. Still, the Barons weren't fazed, going into the semifinals calm and collected.
Doubles
    Doubles play started with #1 Maria Herrera and Olivia Colby quickly winning their match 8-2. The star duo is on fire, continuing their undefeated streak to reach 9-0 in PAC play. Freshman breakouts Claire Cardie and Kina Ehlers proceeded to overthrow their opponent, also finishing with an 8-2 score. Already with 2 team points, the Barons were starting to get in a groove, with the crowds clamoring for raffle prizes after every victory. Everyone moved their attention to the #2 court. Seniors Haley Davinsizer and Estelle Leon were locked in an intense match that went down to the wire. After being down 2-1, the duo rallied to a 5-3 lead, close to the 8 points needed to win their match. A vigorous back and forth ensued, resulting in a sudden tiebreaker. Despite their valiant efforts, Davinsizer and Leon lost the tiebreaker 5-7. Still, the Barons led the Wolverines in total team points 2-1.
Singles
    #1 Maria Herrera just can't stop winning, beating her opponent 6-0 and 6-1. She exited the court to meet an overjoyed crowd, celebrating her continued dominance. Barons lead 3-1, needing just 2 more team points for a trip to the conference finals. The Wolverines fought back, with #5 Haley Davinsizer losing a tough match 3-6 and 1-6. Still, the Barons pushed on. Already #2 as a freshman, Kina Ehlers controlled her match to a resounding 6-2, 6-1 victory. #4 Claire Cardie was just what the Barons needed, scoring 6-3, 6-2 to clinch the Baron's 5th team point. #3 Olivia Colby and #6 Estelle Leon also won their matches respectively.
    The Barons set their sights on the conference finals, in which they face Allegheny College away. The Allegheny Gators are undefeated in conference play, as the #1 seed, they are a formidable opponent. Root for your Barons as they look to reclaim the throne!


Next Up
    With the win, the Barons will travel to Allegheny to take on the Gators in the PAC Championship this Saturday at 1:00 p.m. The Barons fell to them in the regular season by a score of 6-3. In that match, the Barons won #1 doubles and #3 doubles to take a 2-1 lead into singles play. Maria Herrera was the lone Baron to win a singles match, as the Gators adjusted their lineup slightly to seek more favorable matchups. Since their last meeting, the Gators have been destroying all of their opponent, as they have won by a score of 9-0 in eight straight matches. If the Barons can pull of their first ever win against the Gators, who were picked as the favorites to win the PAC Championship, this would be three straight PAC Championship wins for the Barons. This would also be seven straight conference championships for them, as they won four straight AMCC Championships before joining the PAC. 

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