HICKORY, N.C. – The Lander women's tennis team fought hard on the road at Lenoir-Rhyne, but ultimately fell 4-3 to the Bears.

Lander drops to 3-2 overall while Lenoir-Rhyne moves to 2-1 overall.

The Bearcats started the match going up 1-0, as the Blue and Gold took the doubles point. Although losing at the no. 1 doubles spot, Lander recovered with back-to-back wins at the no. 2 and 3 spots. The pairing of sophomore Raquel Acco and senior Maria Rey took the No. 2 doubles 6-2 while senior Lindsey Wiggins and senior Kayleigh Hahn won the No. 3 doubles spot 6-3.

The Bears would get on the board with a win at the No.1 singles spot to tie the match 1-1. Freshman Chiara Gerbino won her match 6-2,6-3 at the No.2 singles spot to give Lander a 2-1 edge. 

Lenoir-Rhyne countered with wins at the No. 2 and 6 singles spots to go up 3-2 before a 3-6,6-0,3-1 win from Rey at the No. 5 singles spot tied things up at three. The Bears would take the final win at the No, 4 singles spot to clinch the 4-3 victory.

The Bearcats return to Greenwood for their next match, as they host North Georgia on February 26 for the first PBC match of the season.

#cLawsUp | @LanderWTennis