No. 9 Longwood Rallies for 4-3 Win Over No. 8 Gardner-Webb
ROCK HILL, S.C. – With its season on the line and facing a 3-0 hole, Longwood women's tennis flipped the script to defeat No. 8 seed Gardner-Webb, 4-3, in first round action of the Big South tournament Wednesday, capped off by a three-set comeback from Marija Venta at the third flight.
BOX SCORE
After the men's team erased a 3-1 deficit earlier in the week, the women's squad one-upped the effort and turned a 3-0 deficit into their third Big South tournament win in program history and made it back-to-back seasons with a postseason victory.
Venta improved her record to 2-1 at the third flight as her comeback, match-sealing win avenged a two-set loss to her counterpart Miljana Ristic just four days earlier to close the regular season.
Gardner-Webb took the early doubles point with a 6-3 decision at flight one and 6-2 margin at the third flight, then followed with two-set wins at courts four and six.
Down 3-0 and just one loss from seeing their season end, Longwood (9-10) turned the match on its ear with a swift and strong 4-0 spurt.
Freshman Tanja Skalda began the Lancer run with a dominant 6-2, 6-2 win at the fifth flight, setting the table for comeback wins from Jamie Breunig and Marija Venta at flights two and three, as well as a three-set victory from ace Yulia Almiron.
Breunig, who faced a match point on six different occasions (down 3-5, 4-5 and 5-6) in the final set, kept the Lancers alive to tie it at 3-3 allowing classmate Venta to deliver in the clutch.
Venta's heroic effort at flight three gives the Lancers three lineup regulars with 10-plus wins joining 11-match winners Breunig and Skalda.
The win gives second-year head coach Maria Lopez a 2-1 record in the Big South tournament, making her the winningest coach in postseason play during the Big South era.
Ninth-seeded Longwood moves on to play top seed and host Winthrop Thursday in quarterfinals action for a second-straight season. Match time between the Lancers and Eagles is set for 9 a.m.