JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (Feb. 20, 2005)- The University of North Florida men's and women's teams each kicked off Peach Belt Conference play on Sunday with wins over Francis Marion. The women had a much easier time, defeating the Lady Patriots 8-1, as the men snuck away with a 5-4 win.

The win improves the No. 7 ranked Lady Ospreys to 5-0 overall, as the No. 3 ranked men's team goes to 5-1.

The UNF women took control from the beginning, sweeping doubles 8-5, 8-2 and 8-0. The strong play continued as each of the five singles victories were in straight sets.

"The girls looked really good today, and went out and took care of business," assistant coach Igal Buberman said. "We look forward to continuing our strong play in conference matches."

Early on, the UNF men's team looked like their match on Saturday had taken something out of them.

"Everybody worked hard yesterday, and it didn't look like we had strong legs today," head coach Tom Schrader said. "However, Francis Marion always plays tough against us, and today was no exception. All matches in conference play are important, so this was a good win for us."

In the deciding match, No. 26 Leo Gomes, already down a set, rallied in the second set to tie the match. He then took the final set 6-0 to seal the victory for the Ospreys.

"I am really proud of Leo for coming back and winning his match," Schrader said. "That showed a lot of leadership and determination."

The Lady Ospreys will continue conference play on Feb. 26 at 11 a.m. as they travel to USC Upstate. The men will next take the court on Feb. 24 when they battle Jacksonville at 1 p.m. at JU.

Women's Doubles
1. No. 19 Hung/Stoppelli (UNF) def. Kamini/Lee (FM) 8-5
2. Barysheva/Eng (UNF) def. Moyer/Ludwig (FM) 8-3
3. Rogers/Brandt (UNF) def. Carmichael/Covell (FM) 8-0

Women's Singles
1. No. 40 M. Kamini (FM) def. No. 22 Yevgeniya Barysheva (UNF) 0-6, 6-1, 10-8
2. N0. 42 Liliana Hung (UNF) def. Jenny Ludwig (FM) 6-0, 6-1
3. Katja Brandt (UNF) def. Elizabeth Lee (FM) 6-0, 6-3
4. Vanessa Sanchez (UNF) def. Sara Moyer (FM) 6-2, 6-3
5. Melanie Eng (UNF) def. Maria Covell (FM) 6-1, 6-0
6. Robin Rogers (UNF) def. Sarah Carmichael (FM) 6-0, 6-1

Men's Doubles
1. No. 15 Gomes/Escallon (UNF) def. Singh/Cury (FM) 8-5
2. Taylor/Emmanuel (FM) def. Terrera/Simpson (UNF) 8-2
3. Gabay/Pereira (UNF) def. Razik/Coupek (FM) 9-7

Men's Singles
1. No. 16 Kevin Taylor (FM) def. No. 10 Jose Terrera (UNF) 5-7, 6-4, 6-3
2. Chatwinder Singh (FM) def. German Escallon (UNF) 6-4, 5-7, 6-3
3. No. 26 Leo Gomes (UNF) def. Alex Cury (FM) 5-7, 7-6 (4), 6-0
4. Franklyn Emmanuel (FM) def. Damien De Polignac (UNF) 6-4, 6-2
5. Elad Gabay (UNF) def. Igor Prielozny (FM) 6-3, 6-1
6. Glen Marshall (UNF) def. Daniel Coupek (FM) 7-5, 6-1