SEWARD, Neb. – Concordia University battled past College of Saint Mary 5-2 on Friday in a fiercely contested Great Plains Athletic Conference tennis dual at Walz Fieldhouse.

The match was moved indoors due to wind (21 mph, gusting up to 36).

"Concordia was more comfortable in those conditions,'' CSM Coach Mike Johnson said. "Still, it was competitive across the board.''

The Flames (8-3 overall, 3-3 GPAC) won two of the six singles matches. At No. 1, Callista Uchil handled Mariana Molano 6-2, 6-0, and at No. 4, Yana Gupta outfought Alana Lopez Pagan 7-6 (2), 7-5.

There were some other near-misses. At No. 2, Chakira Derman defeated Noel Moreno 6-4, 6-1. At No. 3, Ishane Derman edged Iyannah Pardiwalla 6-3, 6-4. At No. 5, Alexa Richert got past Carolyna Truong 6-3, 6-2. And at No. 6, Nina Milic downed Darece Van Auken 6-0, 6-1.

The Bulldogs (15-5, 6-1) won the doubles point by taking two of the three matches. Uchil and Moreno of CSM beat Derman and Molano 6-3 at No. 1. Derman and Lopez Pagan of Concordia beat Gupta and Abrianna Reynosa 6-1 and No. 2. And Milic and Richert of Concordia handled Truong and Pardiwalla 6-1 at No. 3.

"Tough day for us,'' Johnson said. "In singles, we came out well – up on four courts early – but couldn't convert. Strong performances from Yana, who battled through a second-set tiebreaker, and Callista, who was sharp and in control from start to finish.''

CSM plays its final regular-season GPAC match on Saturday at 5 p.m. against Northwestern College at Genesis Westroads. The Flames also will host the GPAC Team Tournament from April 23 to 25.