FAYETTEVILLE, N.C.  Ashton Walker's straight-set victory at No. 1 singles was the clinching point for Methodist's women's tennis team as the Monarchs had little trouble with visiting Fayetteville State Saturday afternoon in an 8-1 non-conference victory over the cross-town Broncos.

THE ESSENTIALS
Final score: Methodist def. Fayetteville State, 8-1
Records: Methodist 1-1, Fayetteville State 0-1
Location: Clayton Tennis Center; Fayetteville, N.C.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Methodist got off to a great start, sweeping the three doubles matches to set up singles action for the clinching point.
• After Abby Caddick picked up the fourth point at 5-singles, Walker swept past the Broncos' Kristin Jackson, 6-0 and 6-1, for the deciding fifth point.
• The initial point of the afternoon came at No. 3 doubles where Taylor Jackson and Allyson Hays teamed up for an 8-3 win over Amber Gladden and Sydney Harris.
• Within the six singles matches the Monarchs surrendered a total of just seven games while rolling to six wins.
• The tightest match of the afternoon came at 2-doubles where Methodist's Jessica Tucker and Catherine Smith battled with FSU's Arnisha Cosby and Kayla Williams into a match tiebreaker. Knotted at 7-7 it was the Methodist tandem that finished out the match, earning a 9-7 tiebreak game for the win.

NEXT UP

• Methodist heads to Fredericksburg, Virginia, on Saturday for a pair of non-conference matches., taking on host University of Mary Washington at 9 a.m., followed by a neutral-site bout against Salisbury University at noon.
• The Broncos travel to West Virginia on Feb. 23 for their next match, taking on host Salem University in an afternoon contest.