LAKELAND - Florida Southern senior Magda Riutort and junior Miroslava Mensikovafinished as runner-up in the main draw doubles here Monday afternoon on the final day of action at the USTA/ITA South Regional Tennis Championships held at the Wynee Warden Tennis Center.
The Moccasin duo, who advanced to Monday afternoon's final after earning a win by default in the semifinals over Barry's tandem of Sonja Larsen and Anaeva Pain in Monday morning's semifinal round, suffered an 8-1 setback to Barry's No. 2 seeded tandem of Linda Fritschken and Emma Onila in the main draw doubles final. It marked the second consecutive ITA South Regional championship for Fritschken and Onila, who also captured the Division II and Super Bowl Doubles Championship at last year's USTA/ITA National Championships.
Fritschken and Onila advanced to the final by posting an 8-6 win in the semifinals of Lynn's No. 3 seeded tandem of Valentine Confalonieri and Martina Gledaceheva.
At the four day event, Riutort, who is a native of Petra, Spain, and Mensikova, who is a native of Hrance, Czech Republic, went 4-1 in doubles action, including advancing to Monday's semifinal round with an 8-5 win in Sunday's quarterfinals against the top-seeded doubles team of Monika Kochanova and Laure Eline Faure from West Florida. The Moccasin tandem was one of four doubles teams seeded fifth in the event.
In addition to crowning a champion in the women's main draw doubles, the women's main draw singles title went to Confalonieri, who defeated Kochanova, 6-3, 6-1 in the championship match. It was the second consecutive ITA South Regional title for Confalonieri as she also won not only the South Region title, but also the women's national singles title in Division II and the Super Bowl Singles Championship last year.
The other women's match played on Monday was in the consolation singles bracket as Saint Leo's Anastasia Wagner took home the title with her straight set (6-2, 6-4) win over West Florida's Faure.
Meanwhile, in the men's side of the draw, the open draw doubles title was won by Lynn's No. 3 seeded team of Danny Riggs and Paolo Volpicelli as they defeated UWF's doubles team of Warren Khun and Alex Peyrot in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3. Riggs and Volpicelli earned a spot in the finals by defeating Barry's No. 1 seeded team of Kevin Sielmann and Ahmed Triki, 8-2 and Khun and Peyrot earned their spot in the finals by posting an 8-6 win over UWF's team of Kenny Brasil and Sebastian Sanchez.
The men's consolation singles title was won by UWF's Juan Pablo Boada as he defeated Saint Leo's Jacobo Gonzalez-Tarrio in straight sets, 6-2, 6-0.
The winners in both singles and doubles in the open draw for both the men and women from the South Regional Championship will now advance to the 2014 USTA/ITA National Small College Championships on Oct. 9-12 at the Palmetto Tennis Center in Sumter, S.C. The USTA/ITA National Small College Championships are comprised of the eight regional champions (and/or at-large selections) from NCAA Divisions II and III, NAIA and Junior/Community Colleges.
Riutort and Mensikova and the rest of Moccasins will return to court on Oct. 17-19 as they conclude their fall schedule by competing at the Grizzly Open hosted by Georgia Gwinnett College in Lawrenceville, Ga.
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