60th Ranked Lady Paladins Shut Out Charlotte 7-0

Feb. 2, 2006

Greenville, SC - The Furman Lady Paladins picked up their first win of the young 2006 season with a 7-0 shut out over Charlotte Thursday night at the Mickel Tennis Center. With the win Furman improves to 1-2, dropping the 49ers to 0-1.

Furman got off to a quick start capturing all three doubles matches to gain the early 1-0 advantage. At No.1 Furman freshman Laura Gioia teamed with Marti Morris for an 8-2 victory over Ofra Friedman and Ashleigh Murray, while in flight two Shannon Moore and Lauren Osborne downed Koren Fleming and Ali Piacente 8-3. In the third doubles the Furman duo of Jacqueline Eckert and Natasa Manojlovic got down early but battled back for an 8-4 victory over Kathy Robey and Michelle Alexander.

Furman carried their momentum into singles where they captured all six matches securing the 7-0 shut out. In flight one Laura Gioia eased by Ofra Freidman 6-1, 6-0 giving the Lady Paladins the quick 2-0 lead. Lauren Osborne and Shannon Moore sealed the Furman victory with 6-3, 6-3 victories in flights three and four respectively. Playing at No.2 Marti Morris shook off a first set loss to down Kathy Robey 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 and in flight six Natasa Manojlovic defeated Koren Fleming 6-1, 6-4. In the final match of the night Furman's Bonnie Baird went to a third set tiebreaker with Michelle Alexander before coming out victorious 3-6, 6-4, 10-4.

The Lady Paladins next match is scheduled for Wednesday, February 8 against Winthrop in Greenville, SC. Match time is set for 3:00 PM.

Singles

1. Laura Gioia (FU) def. Ofra Friedman (UNCC) 6-1, 6-0

2. Marti Morris (FU) def. Kathy Robey (UNCC) 2-6, 6-4, 6-3

3. Lauren Osborne (FU) def. Ali Piacente (UNCC) 6-3, 6-3

4. Shannon Moore (FU) def. Ashleigh Murray (UNCC) 6-3, 6-3

5. Bonnie Baird (FU) def. Michelle Alexander (UNCC) 3-6, 6-4, 10-4

6. Natasa Manojlovic (FU) def. Koren Fleming (UNCC) 6-1, 6-4

Doubles

1. #39 Gioia/Morris (FU) def. Freidman/Murray (UNCC) 8-2

2. Moore/Osborne (FU) def. Fleming/Piacente (UNCC) 8-3

3. Eckert/Manojlovic (FU) def. Alexander/Robey (UNCC) 8-4