DURHAM, N.C. – The first singles win of the season by sophomore
Maria Picazo provided the North Carolina Central University women's tennis team with a late 3-2 lead before visiting UNCW rallied to win the final two matches of the day to win Saturday's non-conference match 4-3.
It was the second straight match the Eagles lost by the slimmest of scores.
The Seahawks got straight-set wins by freshman Stela Joksimovic and junior Lauren Robbins at the fifth and sixth positions of UNCW's lineup to complete the comeback victory.
UNCW (2-1) swept a tightly contested round of doubles. After winning on court three, the Seahawks needed to rally from a 4-3 deficit on court one and then won the final two games with the score leveled at 4-4 on court two to finish off doubles with a pair of narrow 6-4 triumphs in those two matches.
Three of the first four singles matches completed went three sets.
Junior Zoe Huffman outlasted sophomore
Jade Houston by a 6-3, 0-6, 6-3 margin to win the top singles match and provide the Seahawks with an early 2-nil team advantage until NCCU rattled off three consecutive wins.
Freshman
Kennedy Hill was the first Eagle to secure a win as she won 6-4, 7-5 on court two over junior Brinley Bell. Classmate
Isabelle Exsted leveled the team match with a 0-6, 6-3, 6-2 comeback win at No. 4 singles over junior Anna Daniels.
Hill and Exsted have both won two consecutive singles matches and they led the maroon and gray with matching 2-1 records.
Picazo tallied her win in the third slot in the lineup, topping fifth-year senior Lauren Gish by a score of 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 to finish off NCCU's scoring.
NC Central (0-3) will next play at Campbell University on Wednesday at 2 p.m.
