Pensacola, Fla. – In their final tune-up before the Gulf South Conference Tournament, the University of West Alabama tennis teams split a pair of neutral-site matches against nationally-ranked Saint Leo on Saturday afternoon.

The No. 12 UWA women's team closed the regular season strong with a 4-1 victory, while the men's team fell 4-2 to the eighth-ranked Lions.

Women's Match: #12 UWA 4, Saint Leo 1

The top-seeded Tigers (14-5) put together a solid all-around performance to take down No. 41 Saint Leo (12-9). UWA grabbed the early lead by clinching the doubles point, with the team of Shaira Rivera and Valentina Multiba winning 7-5, and Greta Zawels and Lolita Hukasian winning 6-4.

In singles, Alexa Milliam stays undefeated on the season winning in straight sets, while Zawels and Hukasian also won in straight-set wins to put the match out of reach. The Tigers showed depth and poise across the lineup as they head into the postseason as the No. 1 seed in the GSC Tournament, where they will face Delta State in the opening round.

"Saint Leo came in to beat us today, and I'm proud how our team stepped up," said head coach Jeff Beaman. " We really woke up and took care of business after a slow start, so now it's time to keep it rolling."

Men's Match: #8 Saint Leo 4, UWA 2

Despite a strong fight, the West Alabama men (6-13) came up short against No. 8 Saint Leo (18-6) in a highly competitive match. The Lions claimed the doubles point with the team of Iriarte and Cohen, plus Kato and Segovia picking up wins for Saint Leo. The Lions won two of the four singles matches that were finalized to secure the victory.

Wins by Jacob Tapia and Tomas Almeida gave UWA momentum in singles play, but the Tigers couldn't quite close the gap.

"This was a really good fight against a team that can compete for a National Championship," coach Beaman continued. "We are continuing to get better and will be ready to compete in the GSC Tournament."

UWA enters the GSC Tournament as the No. 7 seed and will square off against second-seeded West Florida in the opening round.