ROME, Ga. - Sixth-seeded Georgia Southern saw its season come to a close in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Sun Belt Conference Women's Tennis Tournament with a 4-2 loss to third-seeded Troy on Friday afternoon at the Rome Tennis Center in Rome, Ga.

The Eagles end the campaign with an 18-6 overall record, the third time in the last four seasons that Georgia Southern has won 18 or more matches. Troy advances to the semifinals on Saturday to take on the winner of Marshall and Appalachian State.

The Eagles improve to 18-5 on the year with the victory, while Louisiana sees its season come to a close with an 8-12 record. Georgia Southern advances to face third-seeded Troy on Friday at 2 p.m. in one of the late quarterfinal matchups.

Ninon Martinache and Sonja Keranen delivered an impressive 6-0 win at No. 1 doubles for the Eagles, but Troy claimed the doubles point with wins at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles.

The Eagles took a 2-1 lead over the Trojans thanks to a 6-4, 6-2 win by Mackenzie Leopold at No. 4 singles over Valeriia Avdeeva, and a 6-4, 6-4 win by Ninon Martinache over Kristina Kukaras at No. 1 singles. But Troy would clinch the match with straight set singles wins at No. 3, No. 5 and No. 6 singles.

"Today was a very tough day," Georgia Southern head women's tennis coach Sean McCaffrey said. "Troy played a really good match and capitalized on some key points in both singles and doubles. It's a tough loss for sure as it looked like we had some good momentum going for a bit of time in late first sets, but Troy did a very good job of not giving away too many easy points. Our ladies put up a huge fight and had some outstanding play from Sonja and Ninon in doubles, then again from Mac and Ninon in singles. We just could quite find a way to push a couple of matches to three sets.

"I want to thank Jana [Weiss] and Liv [Ryan] for their fantastic efforts in leading this team as coaches," McCaffrey said. "And a huge special thank you to Sonja, Sophie, Lindsay, Pauli and Silvi as they graduate and move on to their next phase of life. These women all left a lasting mark on our program and we will always be in debt for their contributions and passion for the Georgia Southern tennis program."

RESULTS
Singles
1. Ninon Martinache (GS) def. Kristina Kukaras (TROY) 6-4, 6-4
2. Silvia Martinez (GS) and Hagar Ramadan (Troy) 6-4, 4-6, unfinished
3. Maria Guirguis (TROY) def. Lindsay Tulenko (GS) 7-5, 6-2
4. Mackenzie Leopold (GS) def. Valeriia Avdeeva (TROY) 6-4, 6-2
5. Leena Metwally (TROY) def. Paula Hijos (GS) 7-5, 6-3
6. Gabrielle Leslie (TROY) def. Nanaka Kijima (GS) 6-2, 7-6 (2)

Doubles
1. Ninon Martinache/Sonja Keranen (GS) def. Valeriia Avdeeva/Maria Guirguis (TROY) 6-0
2. Kristina Kukaras/Emilia Namyslo (TROY) def. Silvia Martinez/Lindsay Tulenko (GS) 6-2
3. Hagar Ramadan/Leena Metwally (TROY) def. Mackenzie Leopold/Sophie Wagemaker (GS) 6-2