Franciscan 5, Saint Vincent 2
Steubenville, Ohio - Franciscan hosted Saint Vincent in a pivotal conference match on an overcast and breezy day. The Barons would pickup the crucial victory to jump past the Bearcats in the standings and hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over them.
Doubles
The Barons would drop the first match, as
Veronica Saunders and
Lucy Rochat fell at #3 by a score of 6-1. That would not discourage the Barons though. The duo of
Olivia Colby and
Jordan Beltavski held a commanding lead at #2, but the Bearcats would battle back to tie it up at 5-5. The Barons would lock in to score the final two points and knot it up at one match apiece.
Claire Cardie and
Kina Ehlers were down 4-1, and it looked like the Bearcats were in total control. They did not make many unforced errors which resulted in numerous long rallies. The Barons would stay patient and chipped away slowly but surely. They tied it up at 4-4 and did not look back. They continued forward with two more huge points to take the match 6-4 and give the Barons a 1-0 edge heading into singles.
Singles
The Barons would maintain the momentum from doubles into singles play.
Olivia Colby and
Kina Ehlers would quickly close out their matches in straight sets. Then, Maragaret Vernau would earn the fourth team point in a straight sets win at #6 to clinch the team victory.
Jordan Beltavski kept up her winning ways with a straight sets win at #4.
Hazel Mistry battled hard by picking up several points late but would fall at the #5 spot.
Claire Cardie would drop a very closely contested match at #1, but the Barons would take the win and improve to 2-1 in PAC play.
Next Up
Franciscan will remain at home to take on Allegheny on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. The Barons are in search of their first win against the Gators, as they have dropped the four meetings all-time. The Gators are off to a hot start in conference play, as they sit atop the PAC with a 5-0 mark in conference matches. Last season, when these two teams square off it was a close one, as the Gators won 5-4. Franciscan would win one doubles match, as well as #1, #3, and #4 singles. Both teams have some new faces on the roster, so it will be an exciting matchup to watch on Wednesday.
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