JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Playing with only five players in its final Atlantic Sun Conference match of the season Wednesday afternoon, the University of North Florida women's tennis team rose to the occasion for a 4-3 win at Jacksonville and a SunTrust River City Rumble point.
"Being one player short put us at a very big disadvantage today," UNF head coach Rodrigo Puebla said. "Doubles play really becomes a crucial factor when a team is playing shorthanded because there is no room for error; everyone must win."
And that's exactly how the Lady Ospreys (15-4, 8-2 A-Sun) opened the match. JU (10-11, 5-5) started with a 1-0 edge in doubles play due to UNF's player deficit, but UNF posted 8-5 scores at the Nos. 1 and 2 positions. Senior Ina Durcakova and sophomore Lauren Holton teamed at the No. 2 slot while freshman Aline Berkenbrock and junior Raquel Castro moved their record to 15-4. Before the first serve was taken in singles action, the Dolphins knotted the match at 1-1 with a default win in the No. 6 slot. UNF freshman Nikita van Lierop was forced out of the lineup for one match due to a minor illness, causing the Lady Ospreys to play one down. She will be back in the lineup for the season's final two matches this week.
Castro increased her win total when she returned the first singles result in the form of a straight-set win at the No. 2 position. JU owned the first and third spots in singles action with every match in the contest needing only two sets to be decided.
UNF's two sophomores were the final two to take the court and both needed to come away with a victory for their team to notch the win against the 2008 A-Sun Tournament champion as JU held a 3-2 advantage. Victoria Krook jumpstarted the rally at the No. 4 position and Holton closed it with a 6-1, 6-0 win at No. 5. "We knew playing JU would be tough, and playing with five girls made it harder," Puebla said. "One goal this team set at the beginning of the year was to beat our cross-town rival, and doing so gives us a great feeling of accomplishment. Now we must keep the intensity high for two final matches."
The Lady Ospreys round out their season in a trip to Miami, Fla., facing Florida Atlantic at 3 p.m. on Thursday and No. 40 Florida International on Friday at 2 p.m.
