Women's Tennis Beats Cleveland State for Third Straight Win

Monday, March 11

Jacksonville, Fla.

2 p.m.

University of North Florida

Cleveland State

Photo by: Todd Drexler

3/11/2013 6:49:00 PM | Women's Tennis

By: UNF Athletics

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The University of North Florida women's tennis team won the first three singles matches of the day en route to its third consecutive victory on Monday afternoon, downing Cleveland State 4-3 at UNF Tennis Complex.

"Today was a tough win," Head Coach Audra Cohen said. "We won the first four points quickly to clinch, so all credit to Cleveland State for competing well on the remaining courts."

The Ospreys opened the match with a sweep a doubles for the first time since a February 22 win over South Carolina State. Junior Simona Weymar and sophomore Rebeca Pereira struck first, earning an 8-1 win over Alex Power and Maria Lazaris at No. 2 to secure their fourth win in as many matches.

After sophomores Marina Cunningham and Taylor Hollander grabbed an 8-1 win at No. 3 to clinch the doubles point, seniors Lorena Avile and Melanie Aguirre won 8-5 at No. 1 to complete the sweep. Cunningham and Hollander's win was their first dual match victory as a pairing.

In singles play, UNF raced out to an insurmountable lead as the first three matches concluded. Aviles and Weymar extended winning streaks at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, as Aviles downed Mathilde Orange 6-2, 6-0 for her third consecutive win, while Weymar beat Alex Bush 6-0, 6-1 to extend her team-best winning streak to five matches.

Cunningham then clinched the match for the Ospreys with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Lazaris at No. 5. The victory was the sophomore's third straight win, and Cunningham has lost just four sets in her last eight matches.

While Cleveland State was able to take the remaining three singles matches, two of which lasted three sets, UNF moved to 7-3 on the season with the win, including a 6-2 mark on its home courts. The Vikings fall to 6-6 with the loss.

"We didn't have great matchups today, but we got the job done and that's all that matters," Cohen said. "We start our conference schedule next and I think we're all excited to get started with Atlantic Sun play."

The Ospreys will kick off play in the Atlantic Sun Conference the next time they take the court, as they play host to Kennesaw State on Friday, March 14. Admission for the 10 a.m. match will be free to the public.

Complete Results

North Florida 4, Cleveland State 3

Singles competition

1. Lorena Aviles (UNF) def. ORANGE, Mathilde (CSU) 6-2, 6-0

2. Simona Weymar (UNF) def. BUSH, Alex (CSU) 6-0, 6-1

3. POWER, Alex (CSU) def. Taylor Hollander (UNF) 6-2, 5-7, 1-0 (10-5)

4. SHERWOOD, Kara (CSU) def. Melanie Aguirre (UNF) 6-2, 7-6 (7-4)

5. Marina Cunningham (UNF) def. LAZARIS, Maria (CSU) 6-4, 6-3

6. JANEK, Nicole (CSU) def. Mariella Calderon (UNF) 6-3, 3-6, 6-4

Doubles competition

1. Lorena Aviles/Melanie Aguirre (UNF) def. BUSH, Alex/SHERWOOD, Kara (CSU) 8-5

2. Simona Weymar/Rebeca Pereira (UNF) def. POWER, Alex/LAZARIS, Maria (CSU) 8-1

3. Marina Cunningham/Taylor Hollander (UNF) def. ORANGE, Mathilde/JANEK, Nicole (CSU) 8-1