The ISU tennis team had five players place at the Florida Gulf Coast Invitational this past weekend, with a first-place finisher in senior Marie-Christine Chartier.

Chartier won all three of her singles matches and teamed up with sophomore Emma Waites to win two doubles matches as well. Chartier was on a three-match win streak going into the tournament, and she said she was pretty confident going in because of how the team had practiced.

“We’ve practiced really hard and we’ve been working on some stuff, mostly on staying focused and trying to win the important points, keeping my game steady and trying to stay focused throughout the match, not have ups and downs,” Chartier said.

During the first day of the tournament, Chartier defeated Barbora Vykydalova of North Texas 3-6, 6-4, 10-2.

In her second match of the tournament, she defeated Melanie Aguire of North Florida 6-1, 6-1. Then, during the last day of the tournament, she beat Montse Fernandez of Wichita State 7-6 (3), 6-1.

“I think she is one of the people on the team who completely understands what she can and can’t do on the court,” said coach Armando Espinosa. “The biggest difference that she has over other people is her adaptability and her recognition of her own game.”

The temperature at the tournament wasn’t something the Cyclones were used to, with temperatures in the 30s and 40s. When it’s that cold, the team usually practices indoors, but because the meet was in Florida, there wasn’t an indoor facility.

“A lot of the schools that we played down there, they always play outside, and here we don’t get to play outside very much,” Chartier said. “A lot of it was getting used to the wind and sun and they had that advantage.”

The weather might have affected Chartier’s first game, which she lost 3-6, but from there on she didn’t lose a game. She extended her three-match win streak to six with three wins at the tournament.

Chartier is also a valuable teammate as one of the four seniors on the team.

“She’s always helping,” said Maria Fernanda Macedo. “Everyone knows that if you need something, she can listen to you, she’s a great listener and a great friend. As a senior, she leads the team along with me and Tessa [Lang].”

The Cyclones are off until Jan. 28, when they travel to Minneapolis to take on Minnesota.