SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Presbyterian College women's tennis team began its spring season with a hard-fought battle against the USC Upstate Spartans on Saturday morning but fell short, 5-2.

PC opens the season at 0-1 while USC Upstate improves to 1-0.

Freshman Caroline deLoach (Columbia, S.C.) began her Blue Hose career on a high note, winning her singles and doubles matches with partner Lindsay Krause (Roswell, Ga.). deLoach took a fifth-flight singles match from Ana-Sofia Camberos in thrilling fashion, winning the first set, 7-6, before falling in the second, 6-1. In the third, the freshman battled to a 10-8 tiebreaker win to seal the victory.

Senior Cara Caruso (Roswell, Ga.) also earned a singles win at the third flight. Caruso cruised over Hannah Al-Sakati, 6-3, 6-1, to begin the year with a victory.

Freshman Greer Ransom (Athens, Ga.) also came out strong in a marathon defeat at No. 2. Ransom took the first set from Upstate's Julie Bell, 6-2, before coming up short in the second, 7-5. Ransom battled in the final set but ended up on the losing end of a 10-4 tiebreaker.

In other singles action, Paige Oelke (Athens, Ga.) dropped a shortened match to Isabel von Stryk, 3-2, and Patricia Alves (Campinas, Brazil) fell at the fourth flight to Talia Rojas, 6-4, 6-3. Lucia Leahy (Charlotte, N.C.) also stumbled at the sixth flight to Maria Tonani, 6-1, 6-1.

In doubles play, deLoach and Krause knocked off Tonani and Al-Sakati in a close contest, 8-6. Unfortunately for the Blue Hose, the visitors could not grab the singles point as Oelke and Ransom fell to Rojas and von Stryk, 8-2, and Caruso and Alves dropped their match to Bell and Camberos, 8-4.

PC returns to action on Saturday, February 4 when the squad hosts Georgia Southern in the team's home opener.