JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. -- In the battle of the Southern Conference's unbeaten teams, 64th-ranked ETSU slipped past Furman, 4-3, Saturday at the Dave Mullins Tennis Complex in Johnson City, Tenn., to claim the Southern Conference regular season title.
Down 3-0, the Paladins rallied to tie the score with three singles victories before Sofia Markova defeated junior Sara Snyder, 7-6 (1), 4-6, 7-6(6), at flight one to clinch the win. Snyder, who was down 5-2 in the third set, won four-straight games to lead, 6-5, before falling in the tiebreaker.
With the loss, Furman drops to 10-12 overall and 6-1 in the SoCon and earns the No. 2 seed in next weekend's league tournament. The Paladins will play Western Carolina, the No. 7 seed, Thursday at 10:30 a.m. in the opening round of the conference championships, which will be held at Champions Club in Chattanooga, Tenn. ETSU moves to 13-7 overall and 7-0 in the SoCon and will be the No. 1 seed in the championship tournament.
The Bucs won two of three doubles matches to claim the opening point. Fernanda Carvajal and Daniela Rivera teamed up for a 6-1 victory over junior Ellie Schulson and freshman Macy Hitchcock at flight one, and Markova and Alessandra Caceres defeated junior Jess Dawson and Snyder, 6-2, at number two. The Paladins picked up the win at flight three, where junior Grace Thomas and freshman Maeve Thornton topped Jana Rovira and Ralitsa Alexandrova, 6-3.
ETSU pushed the lead to 2-0 when Caceres downed Hitchcock, 7-5, 6-0, at flight five singles, then Carvajal held on to defeat Thornton, 6-2, 7-6(4), at
number two to bring the Bucs within one point of the win.
The four remaining matches went to a third set. Thomas put Furman on the board with a 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 advantage over Rovira at number four, cutting the deficit to 3-1. Needing to win all three of the final matches, Furman scored at number three, where Schulson beat Rivera, 7-6(1), 3-6, 6-0, and at number six, where junior Marissa Pennings outlasted Alexandrova, 7-6(4), 3-6, 6-2, setting up the decisive flight one contest.
Furman vs. ETSU • 04/13/2023 at Johnson City, Tenn. • Dave Mullins Tennis Complex
#64 East Tennessee State 4, Furman 3
Singles competition
1. Sofia Markova (ETSU) def. Sara Snyder (FUR) 7-6 (7-1), 4-6, 7-6 (8-6)
2. Fernanda Carvajal (ETSU) def. Maeve Thornton (FUR) 6-2, 7-6 (7-4)
3. Ellie Schulson (FUR) def. Daniela Rivera (ETSU) 7-6 (7-1), 3-6, 6-0
4. Grace Thomas (FUR) def. Jana Rovira (ETSU) 2-6, 6-2, 6-2
5. Alessandra Caceres (ETSU) def. Macy Hitchcock (FUR) 7-5, 6-0
6. Marissa Pennings (FUR) def. Ralitsa Alexandrova (ETSU) 7-6 (7-4), 3-6, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. Fernanda Carvajal/Daniela Rivera (ETSU) def. Ellie Schulson/Macy Hitchcock (FUR) 6-1
2. Sofia Markova/Alessandra Caceres (ETSU) def. Jess Dawson/Sara Snyder (FUR) 6-2
3. Maeve Thornton/Grace Thomas (FUR) def. Ralitsa Alexandrova/Jana Rovira (ETSU) 6-3
Match Notes: Furman 10-12, 6-1 SoCon • East Tennessee State 14-7, 7-0 SoCon; National ranking #64 Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (5,2,4,3,6,1)
