ORLANDO, Fla. – Wrapping up a 2-0 spring break trip and pushing its winning streak to eight-straight matches, the Navy women's tennis team (13-4) outlasted a tough UNC Asheville team (7-5) Tuesday afternoon for a 4-3 victory at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla.
 
Sweeping doubles play, the Midshipmen then grabbed two quick singles wins before forcing tiebreaking sets on the other four courts, culminating with sophomore Molly Bellia holding on for a narrow victory over the Bulldogs' Sofia Segui Edmundson to preserve Navy's winning streak.
 
Continuing a breakout spring as doubles partners, junior Anna Jordan and Peyton Amspacher-Philemon racked up a 6-3 win on the top court over Angelina Joy Hug and Segui Edmundson to start the afternoon, while Bellia and freshman Anna Wiskowski clinched the opening point by knocking off the No. 3 UNCA pairing of Avery Sager and Maria sol Alvarez Brandon. Completing the doubles sweep, junior Julia Lee and sophomore Grace Li registered a 6-2 victory at the No. spot against Isabella Moss and Valeria Centeno.
 
Li and Amspacher-Philemon then put the Mids on the edge of clinching their eighth-consecutive win with their singles victories, as Li defeated Sager by a 6-2, 6-2 score in the No. 3 position and Amspacher-Philemon rolled past Centeno, 6-3, 6-4, on the sixth court.
 
Asheville started to rally when Joy Hug recovered to get the 6-1, 3-6, 10-6 decision over sophomore Emma Gu in the top flight, while Alvarez Brandon claimed a 6-1, 2-6, 6-2 win against Jordaan on the fifth court. Moss then came back in the tiebreaking set on the No. 2 court over rookie Nicole Fu, 6-4, 3-6, 10-6, to even the team match at 3-3.
 
Coming down to the No. 4 flight, Bellia fought off Segui Edmundson's rally four times in the tiebreaking set, battling out the 6-4, 5-7, 12-10 victory to keep Navy's streak going.
 
Head Coach Keith Puryear Comments
"Great battle today, we showed our grit and determination to pull this one out. Our doubles came out strong. Peyton and Anna J. got us on the board first, as they played great ball to get us the first point. They were followed by Molly and Anna W., and they both served smart, not getting broken once in their set, as they rode their one break of serve at 5-4 to get us the doubles point. Grace and Julia followed up with a comprehensive win at two."
 
"Singles was a battle. Nicole, Emma and Anna J. all lost the first set, but showed tenacity to win their second sets. That's the type of determined play you want going into conference play. Grace and Peyton played a solid ball to get straight-set wins. I loved what Molly did in closing out her match to get the team win; she was resolute, sticking with her strategy in the very critical moments of the match. This type of match is a great precursor to the Patriot League play to come. We'll have one more practice here before a few days to recover for the final push of the season and the Patriot League matches ahead."
 
Match Notes
• Navy moved to 1-0 in the all-time series with UNC Asheville.
• Amspacher-Philemon has won her last 10 singles matches.
• Navy's eight-match winning streak is the Mids' longest since a nine-game win streak from March 13-April 12, 2023.
 
Up Next
Navy will begin its Patriot League slate on Saturday, March 21 when it hosts Lehigh at 11:00 a.m. in Annapolis, Md.