No. 9 Academy of Art versus No. 10 Saint Leo Final Results

SAINT LEO, Fla. – Playing in their third match in three days, No. 9 Academy of Art women's tennis faced a tough challenge against No. 10 Saint Leo. However, despite falling behind 2-1 after doubles, the Urban Knights showcased their resilience by taking four of the six singles contests, coming away with a 5-4 victory.

In doubles, No. 17-ranked Alma Thell-Lenntorp and Klara Thell-Lenntorp were the only ART U duo to record a win, but they did so in a definitive manner, defeating No. 6 Maja Pindelska and Madeleine Gauthier 8-2. The other two matches were close contests, especially in the second position: Junior Taisiia Andrieieva and sophomore Mariacristina Andrisani tied the match up 8-8 to force a tiebreaker, but their opponents won by the final score of 9-8, (5-0).

Heading into singles with just one point, the Urban Knights were forced to take the long road to victory which meant taking four of the six forthcoming matches. No. 14 Monika Stanikova grabbed her seventh-consecutive win in the first position, taking things into a decisive third set which ultimately decided things in Saint Leo, Fla. With both teams' scores tied at 4-4, Stanikova's match was the last one standing. However, after going 6-2, 4-6 in the first two sets, she refused to surrender a game in the third, taking the final set by the score of 6-0. No. 70 K. Thell-Lenntorp picked up a win in the third positon as well, winning in straight sets (6-3, 6-1) and her sister, A. Thell-Lenntorp won in the fifth (6-3, 6-1). The last Urban Knights win came in sixth singles where junior Paula Alcantara took care of business with a score of 6-2, 7-6.

"Today's win was a byproduct of an unbelievable team performance," said head coach Clarisse Baca. "It's always difficult to recover from trailing 2-1, but the team simply got the job done with a lot of passion and heart. I'm very proud of them and the way they kept fighting for every ball."

Now with four wins in a row, including three on this road trip, ART U will have their first day off on Wednesday when they will rest up for a big match on Thursday, February 29 against No. 4 Barry. The match is set to see a first serve at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

"Today was one of the biggest wins of the season," said Baca. "We will use this as a motivational tool to keep going."