ERIE — Warren pulled out a hard-fought 3-2 girls tennis win on Tuesday at Mercyhurst Prep.

“This was a match we had highlighted on our calendar since day one,” said Warren coach Thomas Pellegrino. “This was a region matchup and gives Warren a nice edge over ‘Hurst to claim the second-place spot in the region under Villa.”

At top singles, Iris Kiehl lost to Lauren Richmond, 4-6, 1-6.

“Lauren is probably the second-best player in D10 AA,” said Pellegrino, “so we knew this would be a tough one. Iris started off hot and caught Richmond with some early nerves, leading to Iris getting up 4-1 in the first. Unfortunately, after that change over, she got on a hot streak, capturing the next 10 games in a row.”

At second singles, Grace Carr lost, 1-6, 3-6, to Sophia Potalivo.

“This match was closer than the score indicates,” said Pellegrino. “Sophia is a consistent baseliner and makes you earn every single point. Grace played well, but Sophia was able to stay a little more steady and wasn’t giving us any free points.”

At third singles, Lucy Harrison defeated Vanessa Jarmolowicz, 6-1, 6-1.

“Lucy played like an absolute monster today,” said Pellegrino. “This was easily the best tennis we have seen her play and it came at the right time. Vanessa was a solid player, but Lucy was striking the ball beautifully and hitting her off the court. Great win for Lucy today.”

In the No. 1 doubles match, Izzy Heacox and Kaelin Hatfield defeated Maggie Gallogher and Chloe Difranco, 6-0 7-6 (7-3).

“This first set in this match was won within 20 minutes,” said Pellegrino. “Izzy and Kaelin were firing on all cylinders early, crashing the net and not making many errors. In set two, Mercyhurst stepped up their play quite a bit and it was very back and forth. Fortunately, in the tie-break, our girls played fearless and got to a quick 5-1 lead and it was too late for ‘Hurst to come back and we pulled out the set with a 7-3 breaker.”

At second doubles, Winnie Wolf and Madalynn Perry defeated Quinlan Cullen and Mari Cilppinger, 1-6, 6-1, 6-1.

“We want to completely forget about the first set in this match,” said Pellegrino. “The girls were very nervous and making mistake after mistake. Once we calmed down, though, we were in control from start to finish with both the second and third set being won with ease.

“Overall, I could not be more proud of the way our girls played today,” said Pellegrino. “They played with heart, passion, and high intensity. … This puts us in control for the second-place spot and puts all the pressure on Mercyhurst when they come to Warren in a few weeks.”

Warren is now 2-2 on the season and travels to Fairview on Thursday for a region matchup.