GREENVILLE, S.C. -- In the battle of the Southern Conference's unbeaten teams, No. 41 Furman downed ETSU, 5-2, Saturday at the Mickel Tennis Center to claim the Southern Conference regular season title.  

With the win, Furman (18-3, 7-0 SoCon) earned the No. 1 seed in next week's league tournament.  The Paladins, who won their league-best 27th regular season title, will play No. 8 UNCG Thursday at 1 p.m. in the opening round of the conference championships, which will be held at Champions Club in Chattanooga, Tenn.

ETSU drops to 12-8 overall and 6-1 in the SoCon and will be the No. 2 seed in the tournament.

The Paladins claimed two doubles wins to take the first point.  Senior Jess Dawson and sophomore Macy Hitchcock trounced Julia Millan and Jana Rovira, 6-1, at flight two, but the Bucs evened the slate as Alessandra Caceres and Daniela Rivera topped seniors Ellie Schulson and Sara Snyder, 6-3, at number one.  In the decisive number three contest, seniors Alexa Griffith and Grave Thomas held off Ralitsa Alexandrova and Ksenija Rage, 6-3, for the point.

Senior Marissa Pennings entered the singles lineup at flight three, where she blew past Rovira, 6-2, 6-1, to push the Paladin advantage to 2-0, but ETSU tied the match with victories at flights one and two.   Caceres slipped past Dawson, 6-4, 6-4, at number two, then Rivera topped Snyder, 6-2, 7-5, in the flight one contest. 

Furman won the remaining singles matches for the victory.  Hitchcock defeated Alexandrova, 6-3, 6-2, at number five, before Schulson clinched the match with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Millan at flight four.  At flight six, Thomas came from behind for a 4-6, 6-4, 1-0(10-4) advantage versus Rage.

"First, we would like to thank the Furman Family for coming out to support us today, especially our men's program who have been amazing all semester," said Furman head coach Michelle Dasso, who is in her third year at the helm of the Paladin program.  "Our athletic director, Jason Donnelly, says all the time, which I completely agree with, success takes a village. The girls are so proud to bring a regular season title back to Furman. 

"I personally want to thank my two amazing assistants," continued Dasso.  "Grant Esposito has pushed the girls with conditioning consistently throughout the year, which has been a huge part of our success, particularly down the stretch.  Jessica Ho is just an exceptional human.  We are thrilled for our girls but know they are not satisfied.  They will be hunting for the SoCon tournament title next week."

ETSU vs Furman • 04/12/2025 at Greenville, S.C. • Mickel Tennis Center

#41 Furman 5, ETSU 2
Singles competition
1. Daniela Rivera (ETSU) def. Sara Snyder (FUR) 6-2, 7-5
2. Alessandra Caceres (ETSU) def. Jess Dawson (FUR) 6-4, 6-4
3. Marissa Pennings (FUR) def. Jana Rovira (ETSU) 6-2, 6-1
4. Ellie Schulson (FUR) def. Julia Millan (ETSU) 6-3, 6-4
5. Macy Hitchcock (FUR) def. Ralitsa Alexandrova (ETSU) 6-3, 6-2
6. Grace Thomas (FUR) def. Ksenija Rage (ETSU) 4-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-4)

Doubles competition
1. Alessandra Caceres/Daniela Rivera (ETSU) def. Ellie Schulson/Sara Snyder (FUR) 6-3 
2. Jess Dawson/Macy Hitchcock (FUR) def. Julia Millan/Jana Rovira (ETSU) 6-1
3. Alexa Griffith/Grace Thomas (FUR) def. Ralitsa Alexandrova/Ksenija Rage (ETSU) 6-3

Match Notes: ETSU 12-8, 6-1 SoCon • Furman 18-3, 7-0 SoCon; National ranking #41 
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (3,2,1,5,4,6)