April 9, 2009

Mt. Pleasant, S.C. - The Furman women's tennis moved one match closer to completing a tenth consecutive undefeated Southern Conference season, defeating College of Charleston, 6-1, on Thursday afternoon at the CofC Tennis Center at Patriots Point. The Lady Paladins (13-7, 8-0) ended the Cougars (19-4, 7-1) 11-match winning streak and are now the only unbeaten team in the league. Furman will face Wofford and Davidson in the final two regular-season matches of the year.

With victories at the top two doubles positions, Furman earned the doubles point to take the early advantage in the match. Senior Laura Gioia and sophomore Monica Arguello improved to 11-8 on the season with an 8-3 victory over Laura Borza and Anna Lee Evans. At position two, sophomore Jennifer Betts and senior Lauren Tomory clinched the point with an 8-5 win against Kinsey Casey and Keely Mulligan.

Gioia remained unstoppable in singles, recording her ninth consecutive victory and improving to 15-4 on the season with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Borza at the top spot. Arguello stayed undefeated in league action, knocking off Holly Dowse, 6-3, 6-1, at position two. Reigning SoCon Player of the Week Jessica Preeg defeated Caroline Newman, 7-6, 4-6, 1-0, at number three. Preeg is 8-0 against SoCon opponents and has won her last five matches. Freshman Susan Bitetti and Betts rounded out the scoring for the Lady Paladins with wins at number four and six singles, respectively.

Furman returns to Greenville for its final home match of the season on Wednesday, April 15. The Lady Paladins will battle Wofford in a match slated to begin at 3 p.m.

#74 Furman 6, #66 College of Charleston 1
Doubles
1. Monica Arguello/Laura Gioia (FUR) def. Laura Borza/Anna Lee Evans (CofC) 8-3
2. Jennifer Betts/Lauren Tomory (FUR) def. Kinsey Casey/Keely Mulligan (CofC) 8-5
3. Caroline Newman/Holly Dowse (CofC) def. Jessica Preeg/Susan Bitetti (FUR) 8-5

Singles
1. #15 Laura Gioia (FUR) def. Laura Borza (CofC) 6-1, 6-3
2. #91 Monica Arguello (FUR) def. Holly Dowse (CofC) 6-3, 6-1
3. Jessica Preeg (FUR) def. Caroline Newman (CofC) 7-6, 4-6, 1-0
4. Susan Bitetti (FUR) def. Anna Lee Evans (CofC) 6-4, 6-3
5. Keely Mulligan (CofC) def. Lauren Tomory (FUR) 6-3, 6-1
6. Jennifer Betts (FUR) def. Kinsey Casey (CofC) 6-3, 3-6, 6-4