WINONA, MINN. — It took nearly six hours and a trip to Minnesota, but the Central College women's tennis persevered for a 5-3 victory over Wartburg College in the Iowa Conference quarterfinals Friday night.

The marathon match started at 4 p.m. on outdoor courts in Decorah. The two teams completed the doubles matches with the Dutch holding a 2-1 lead. Central had a chance to go up 3-0, but came up short 9-8 at No. 2 doubles.

"Our doubles looked great," coach Ryun Ferrell said.

Part way through the first set of singles, the skies opened and rain started to fall. Unable to complete the matches outside, the teams headed an hour north to the Winona Tennis Center in Winona, Minnesota, the designated rain site. The six-court facility was split evenly between the Dutch and the other quarterfinal pitting Loras College against the University of Dubuque.

Using just three courts, Central eventually won the necessary three matches to take the match. Central moves on to play No. 1 Luther College at 9 a.m. Saturday morning.

"We survived and advanced," coach Ryun Ferrell said. 'It's always a battle when you play Wartburg and today was just that."

The only Central player to go 2-0 was No. 1 singles player Ashley Maley (junior, Waverly, Waverly-Shell Rock HS). After partnering with EmmaGrace Walter (junior, Johnston) for an 8-2 win at No. 1 doubles, she beat Alex Peterson 7-5, 6-2

"Maley played great," Ferrel said. "She started off a little slow and her opponent came out. She settled into a rhythm and took care of business. She really outwilled her opponent.

Singles wins also came from No. 3 Paige Vannausdle (junior, Red Oak), who won 7-6, 7-6 and Kirsten Jordan's (sophomore, Clear Lake) 6-0, 6-0 whitewashing at No. 6

"We did outstanding in singles," Ferrell said. "We looked tough across the lineup."

A win against the Norse in Saturday's semifinals would earn Central a spot in the league title match Saturday afternoon while a loss would end the season.