MELBOURNE – Winning two singles points in three sets, #37 Florida Tech was able to overcome a pair of 1-point deficits Sunday afternoon to win the completion of a suspended match over Florida Southern, 5-4. It was the final regular season match for both teams heading into the Sunshine State Conference Tournament.

The Moccasins held a 2-1 lead after doubles when the match was suspended on Thursday due to weather. Both of those wins came by 9-8 scores. In the top flight, senior Charles Garneau (L'ancienne-Lorette, Quebec) and sophomore Laurent Mailloux also had their match extended to a 10-8 score in the tie-breaker, while freshmen Derek Bell (Creve Coeur, Mo.) and Arthur Viallaneix (Apopka, Fla.) won 7-2 in their tie-breaker. The Panthers, meanwhile, won another close doubles match when Beau Fieldsend and Ricardo Corona defeated sophomore Fabian Lundberg (Akersberga, Sweden) and freshman Brian Slivonik (Oyster Bay, N.Y.), 8-6.

When singles play resumed Sunday afternoon, the Panthers (13-9, 2-4) began their comeback with wins at No. 3 and No. 4, while the Moccasins (5-18, 1-5) countered with a 6-2, 6-4 win by Garneau at No. 6. With Lundberg winning at the top flight over Patrick Hernandez, 6-4, 7-5, the Moccasins still had a 4-3 lead with the remaining two matches split after two sets.

Slivonik had forced a third set at No. 5 against Corona with a 6-4 decision in the second, but Corona earned the individual win by taking the finale, 6-0. The Panthers picked up another point when Fieldsend came back to win the final two sets over Mailloux, ultimately taking it by a 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 score.

Sunday's result gave Florida Tech the #5 seed in this week's Sunshine State Conference Tournament at Saint Leo, sending the Panthers into a first-round match against Rollins on Thursday. Florida Southern is now the #6 seed and will face 3rd-seeded Lynn on Thursday at 5:00. The SSC Tournament is being hosted by Saint Leo, and will run Thursday through Saturday.