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For Immediate Releaseeureka, illinois
April 16, 2009
EC takes 5 singles matches to surprise defending SLIAC champs 5-4
As if taking on Principia College, which has claimed 15 of the 18 league championships the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference as ever handed out, was not challenging enough, the Eureka College women's tennis team handed the visiting Panthers a 3-0 lead after doubles play. But, the Red Devils still went on to knock off Principia the hard way, winning five out of six singles matches for a 5-4 victory.
Eureka (6-2, 5-1 SLIAC) may have entered the match with a better record, but the Red Devils knew their opponents from Principia (2-9, 2-2 SLIAC) would battle with hearts of champions. To the surprise of no one, all three doubles match ups went down to the final few points, but Principia prevailed in all three. The visitors took a pair of 8-6 decisions and third by an 8-5 count.
Eureka has been able to rely on consistent play from all members of the team this season, but especially from Meredith Lynch (Dunlap, Ill./HS) and Laura Fandel (Pekin, Ill./HS) in singles. Once again, they delivered efficient victories when EC needed them most as Lynch won her first singles match 6-1, 6-0 and Fandel was triumphant 6-0, 6-1 at fifth singles.
K.C. Gahlon brought Principia within one point of clinching the match with a win in the No. 2 singles contest, but Natalie Wetterauer (Washington, Ill./HS) countered for Eureka by winning at No. 4 singles, 7-5, 6-3. That left Principia with four wins and Eureka with three as the two remaining contests played on into the twilight in decisive third sets.
Courtney Lauss (Washington, Ill./HS), who dropped the opening frame of the No. 6 singles match 6-2 only to fight back to extend the match by taking the second set 6-3, clinched her face off with Courtney Banko by winning the third 6-4. That meant the No. 3 singles match between Alyssa Wetterauer (Washington, Ill./HS) of EC and Heather Libbe of Principia would break the 4-4 tie.
Coincidently enough, that match was also tied at 4-4 in the third set before Wetterauer served for a 5-4 lead, then broke her opponent to send Eureka to its third straight win and a 4-0 record at home in what turned out to be another exciting chapter to a fantastic turn-around season for the Red Devils. In Eureka's two other match ups in previous years against Principia since joining the SLIAC, the Red Devils had not won a single match in suffering a pair of 9-0 losses.
The Red Devils will conclude conference regular season play Saturday, April 18 at 10:00 am with a home match versus Fontbonne University. With a win, Eureka would clinch no worse than the No. 2 seed heading into the SLIAC Tournament the following weekend.
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For More Information Contact:
Bryan Moore
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