Jan. 17, 2010
Fort Myers, Fla. - After a rough first day of action, seeing the Tigers win just three of eleven matches, Missouri bounced back to see a productive second day and advance several players to finals of their respective brackets.
Day two saw the Tigers waiting through a two-hour rain delay before claiming seven wins on the day, and advancing a doubles team and five singles players to the consolation finals.
In singles action, junior Mallory Weber suffered a loss Saturday to FAMU's Rachel Pye in three sets before being defeated by Purdue's Michelle Sammons in three sets on Saturday, 1-6, 6-3, 7-10.
"I was really proud of the way she bounced back to take the second set [Saturday] after a tough first. I don't like losing one bit, but it was a good match and a good experience for her," said Head Coach Blake Starkey.
In flight 3, freshman Andrea Lewis loss to Purdue's Bhavani Tirumurti before making her way to the consolation finals of her bracket with a three set win over FGCU.
"I'm really proud of Andrea, and I was happy to see her get that tiebreaker in, and the win," Starkey said.
Both Sofia Ayala and Kaitlyn Ritchie advanced to the consolation finals of flights 4 and 5. Ayala will face North Florida's Victoria Krook, while Ritchie will face Anya Baronayte of Akron.
In flight 6, newcomer Maria Christensen made her way through the bracket on day one claiming Missouri's only win in singles over FGCU's Jen Evans in straight sets, 6-4, 6-2. On Sunday, Christensen dropped a match to Fernanda Perotta of Arkansas, 2-6, 3-6. She will face FAMU's Alexis Brown on Monday for third place honors.
In flight 7 singles, Kristen Bleakley and Maureen Modesto both defeated their opponents from FAMU and NW State in straight sets. They are slated to face one another tomorrow in the consolation final for fifth place honors.
Sophomore Jamie Mera suffered an ankle injury in her first match of the day on Saturday against Purdue, and will not compete the rest of the weekend. In addition to her being removed from the Flight 2 bracket, her doubles team, with partner Weber, withdrew from the doubles flight 1 as well.
The Hilton Garden Inn Eagle Invite concludes Monday. Play begins at 8 a.m. ET from the FGCU Tennis Complex.