EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.  -  SIUE tennis needed all hands on deck to remain undefeated at home, and clutch moments in singles play helped the Cougars to their ninth win of the season on Saturday afternoon.

"That was a huge win for our young team over a Belmont squad we haven't beaten since 2017," said SIUE Head Coach Adam Albertsen following the match. "Our team really jumped out in singles play and competed at a high level. Winning first sets on five courts says a lot about the confidence and fight in this team."

The Cougars narrowly dropped the doubles point, 2-1, with Jill Lambrechts and Maria Thibault securing the 6-3 set win on the No. 1 doubles court. Then, the match moved to singles play, where the Cougars took straight set victories on the No. 3, 4, 5, and 6 courts to claim the match. Jordan Schifano made quick work of her opponent, winning 6-0, 6-2 on the No. 3 court. Nicole Gomez secured the straight set victory on the No. 5 court, and Callaghan Adams added a 6-3, 6-3 win on the No. 6 singles court. Fabiola Perez clinched the SIUE victory with a tiebreaker win in the second set, taking the No. 4 court win, 6-4, 7-6.

SIUE tennis, which improves to 9-4 overall and 2-1 in Ohio Valley Conference play, will hit the road for a two-match road swing next weekend. The trip will start on Friday, April 9 at noon, when the Cougars travel to the Bluegrass State for a fixture at Murray State.

"Next week will be big as we prepare for Murray State and Austin Peay," added Albertsen. "Even in a win, we know we have some areas to keep improving on down the stretch run."