JACKSONVILLE, Ala.  -  SIUE tennis put together a strong effort in their Ohio Valley Conference opener on Saturday afternoon, but ultimately fell to the host Jacksonville State Gamecocks.

"We took a few games to settle into outdoors and the wind," said SIUE Head Coach Adam Albertsen following the match.

After narrowly dropping the doubles point and allowing the Gamecocks to muster a 3-0 lead, the Cougars battled back - forcing many singles fixtures into extra sets and taking wins on the No. 5 and No. 6 courts. Nicole Gomez improved to an outstanding 7-1 with a straight-set victory on the No. 5 court, while Callaghan Adams won her sixth singles match of the season, earning a 5-7, 7-6, 7-6 decision in the No. 6 position. Freshman Jordan Schifano narrowly fell on the No. 2 singles court, dropping her first singles match of her collegiate career. Fellow freshman Fabiola Perez also forced her match into three sets.

Albertsen lauded the efforts of his squad, saying "After going down 3-0, we battled back and looked to have a huge swing in our direction."

The Cougars, who drop to 7-4 on the season and 0-1 in conference play, will head to Charleston, Illinois, for a Tuesday afternoon fixture against in-state foe Eastern Illinois.

"I'm extremely proud of this team," added Albertsen. "We had some tough three-setters not go our way, but we had chances to win down to the wire. Give a lot of credit ot JSU, they played well and we will now get ready for Eastern Illinois on Tuesday."