FARMVILLE, Va. – The USC Upstate women's tennis team fell 4-3 to Longwood on Sunday afternoon at Lancer Courts.
 
"Really liked the way these ladies competed today," USC Upstate head tennis coach Tim McLane said. "Showed a lot of heart hanging around and competing. Played our best doubles point of the season to get off to a good start. We were trying to be aggressive and apply some pressure in the singles, which is what we always strive for. We just have to execute a little better when we finish points."
 
USC Upstate (1-13, 0-4 BSC) got off to a hot start in doubles action on Sunday afternoon. The Spartans no. 1 doubles tandem of Elin Hellberg and Gabriela Cevallos dominated their match with a 6-1 victory over the Lancers top tandem. At the No. 2 doubles court the Spartans duo of Roberta Armani and Morgan Valentine picked up a 6-1 win to clinch the doubles point for the Spartans.
 
Leading 1-0 the Spartans looked to carry their momentum in the singles portion of the match. Longwood tied up the match at 1-1 after a win at the No. 5 singles court. Valentine put the Spartans back up at 2-1 after a straight sets victory at the No. 4 singles flight.
 
Longwood took a 3-2 advantage after a pair of straight set victories at the top two flights. The weight of the match came fell to the No. 3 and No. 6 singles courts as both matches moved into a decisive third set. Longwood won in the third set of the No. 3 singles flight to clinch the match, Laura Illanes continued to fight and picked up the third set victory at the No. 6 singles court.
 
UP Next for the Spartans
 USC Upstate will host Western Illinois in a double-header at the USC Upstate Tennis complex on Tuesday, March 10. The first match of the day will start at 11:00 a.m., with the second match of the starting at 3:00 p.m.

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