Georgia Gwinnett College women's tennis players posted a strong 6-1 record in a busy Friday of action at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's South Regional at the GGC Tennis Facility.

The Grizzlies had a pair of singles players collect quarterfinal-round victories, while the senior tandem of Justine Lespes and Isid Hernandez opened the doubles draw with a Round of 16 triumph.

DRAWS: SINGLES | DOUBLES

Lespes, the tournament's No. 1 seed, won a pair of singles matches in straight sets to claim one of the four spots in the tournament's semifinal round. She started with a 6-2, 6-1 triumph against SCAD Atlanta's Adrianna Kluska.

Then, the defending NAIA singles national champion won a hard-fought first set against Honoka Tsuji of Tennessee Wesleyan University, coming out on top by a 7-5 score. The GGC player closed out the match with a convincing 6-2 score in the second set.

Meanwhile, No. 2-seeded Hernandez also was victorious twice in straight sets on Friday. She saved her best performance of the tournament for the quarterfinal round, with a 6-2, 6-1 victory against Middle Georgia State University's Marina Prieto. Hernandez picked up a 6-3, 6-4 win against Tennessee Wesleyan's Mercedes Chasset in the morning match.

The top-seeded Lespes-Hernandez doubles duo earned an 8-3 victory against a team from Tennessee Wesleyan to advance to the quarterfinal round on Saturday, September 21, starting at 8 a.m. The singles semifinal matches are scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m.
 
Coach's Corner
"It was a solid day for the women's team. Justine and Isid are a new doubles team that works well together. I'm very excited to see how they continue to play throughout this tournament. They also are both competing in the semifinal of the singles after very strong performances today," said Head Coach Hannah Keeling.
 
Up Next
Georgia Gwinnett College players are scheduled to continue play in the ITA South Regional on Saturday, September 21. Matches start at 8 a.m. at the GGC Tennis Facility.