SCORESHEET
THIBODAUX, La - With the score tied at 3-3, the match against rival Southeastern Louisiana came down to the No. 1 line for the Nicholls State University women's tennis team and freshman
Lingfeng Gu came away with a thrilling three-set victory to give the Colonels a 4-3 win on Wednesday at the Colonel Tennis Complex.
Gu defeated Dany Raygadas in the first set, 6-3, before dropping the second, 6-2. In the crucial decisive third set, Gu clinched head coach
Greg Harkins' first victory in conference as she won 6-4.
"It was a little bit of pressure because I had to fight the whole match and for every point," Gu said. "My teammates helped me fight through and get the victory."
Nicholls (6-2, 1-1 SLC) got off to a great start against Southeastern (3-5, 0-2 SLC) by taking two of three matches in doubles to grab a 1-0 lead.
Ambika Pande and
Andrea Mastrippolito cruised on court 3 for a 6-1 victory and after SLU tied it up with a win on court 1,
Changwei Wei and
Mariia Kozachok secured the point with a 6-3 victory on the No. 2 line.
Pande again gave the Colonels a strong start with a straight-set victory in singles at No. 3. However, SLU rallied to take the lead by winning courts 2, 6 and 5 to come within a point of clinching the match.
After winning the first set on the No. 4 court, 7-5, Kozachok kept Nicholls alive by taking the second against Lucia Bustamante, 6-2. The victory improved Kozachok's record to 7-1 on the season and set up Gu for the thrilling finish.
"I was very pleased with the balance across our lineup in this tough conference match. Southeastern fights until the end and it was a great match," Coach Harkins said. "I am very happy with the team effort today and fight across the board. Ling had a gutsy win at the end"
The Colonels will hit the road for their next four matches – all in league play – starting Saturday against Stephen F. Austin. First serve in Nacogdoches is scheduled for 1 p.m.
