INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.— Kseniia Eremina rallied from one set down to win her singles match and clinch the deciding point for the Drury Panthers in their 4-3 win over Findlay in the first round of the NCAA-II Tournament on Monday in Indianapolis, Indiana.
 
Drury, the fifth seed in the Midwest Regional, advances to the second round with a 16-5 record. The Oilers, seeded fourth on the regional bracket, end the year 18-6.
 
Eremina and her singles opponent, Lidia Laskova, were the final two players remaining, with the match tied at 3-3. Eremina lost the first set 7-6 (8-6), then evened the number six match-up with a 6-3 win in the second set. With the third set even at 3-3, Eremina captured the final three games to close out the set 6-3, as well as the match, and deliver the opening round win for the Panthers.
 
Findlay opened the morning with a 1-0 lead, winning two of three tightly contested doubles matches. Laiying Alvarado and Madison Arquette defeated Drury's Alma Abazi and Nastastia Jedrychowski 6-4. The Panthers evened the doubles competition with a 7-5 win for Maria Fernanda De la Torre Ugarte Espejo and Clara Kuehnle over Elina Ivanova and Anamarija Kovacevic. The deciding doubles point would go to a tie-breaker as Emily Hadler and Zuzanna Krygier, ranked 19^th nationally in doubles, edged Ewa Samberger and Kseniia Eremina 7-6 (7-4).
 
Drury quickly seized a 3-1 lead, though, in singles. Leana Chanove quickly got the Panthers a point with a 6-0, 6-1 win over Laura Brito. Ewa Sanberger won moments later with a 6-2, 6-1 win against Emily Hadler, then Clara Kuehnle put Drury within a point of advancing with a 6-2, 6-0 win over Anamarija Kovacevic.
 
The Oilers got wins from their number one singles player, Elina Ivanova, who defeated Nastasia Jedrychowski 7-5, 6-2, and Findlay sent the match to a seventh and deciding point on Laiying Alavardo's 6-4, 6-2 win over Alma Abazi.
 
The only one of the six singles matches to go to a third set was Eremina's clinching win over Laskova.
 
"I'm so proud of these kids and the way they dug in," said Drury head coach Jarrod Smith. "We have a lot of seniors and it's special to see them get a chance to advance and make a run in this tournament.
 
"We knew going in that Findlay was really good in doubles, they've only lost five for six doubles matches all year, but we played right with them. We thought we had an advantage in singles, though, and we were able to win three of them really quick, but we were also in some trouble in the other three. I'm really proud of Kseniia; she had a 5-0 lead in the first set tie-breaker but then had to dig really deep to bounce back and win the next two sets."
 
Drury advances to the NCAA-II Tournament second round for the first time since 2019 and will face the sub-regional host and the Midwest Regional's top seed, Indianapolis. The Greyhounds are ranked 10^th nationally and won the GLVC Tournament last weekend with a 4-2 win over Drury in the finals.
 
The second round match starts at 9 am (Central) in Indianapolis, Indiana.
 
The winner of Tuesday's second round will advance to the NCAA-II Tournament's final site in Orlando, Florida, for the next four rounds May 11-16.  
 
#41 Drury Panthers 4, #30 Findlay 3
May 01, 2023 at Indianapolis, Ind. (UIndy Tennis Center)
 
Singles competition
1. Elina Ivanova (FIND-W) def. #36 N. Jedrychowski (DRURY-W) 7-5, 6-2
2. Clara Kuehnle (DRURY-W) def. Anamarija Kovacevic (FIND-W) 6-2, 6-0
3. Ewa Samberger (DRURY-W) def. Emily Hadler (FIND-W) 6-2, 6-1
4. Laiying Alvarado (FIND-W) def. Alma Abazi (DRURY-W) 6-4, 6-2
5. Leana Chanove (DRURY-W) def. Laura Brito (FIND-W) 6-0, 6-1
6. Kseniia Eremina (DRURY-W) def. Lidia Laskova (FIND-W) 6-7 (6-8), 6-3, 6-3
 
Doubles competition
1. #19 Emily Hadler/Zuzanna Krygier (FIND-W) def. #39 Ewa Samberger/Kseniia Eremina (DRURY-W) 7-6 (7-4)
2. Maria Espejo/Clara Kuehnle (DRURY-W) def. Elina Ivanova/Anamarija Kovacevic (FIND-W) 7-5
3. Laiying Alvarado/Madison Arquette (FIND-W) def. Alma Abazi/N. Jedrychowski (DRURY-W) 6-4
 
Match Notes
Drury Panthers 16-5; National ranking #41; Regional ranking #5
Findlay 18-6; National ranking #30; Regional ranking #4
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (5,3,2,4,1,6)
NCAA-II Tournament, 1st round
A-41