The Phoenix men’s and women’s tennis teams’ seasons ended abruptly on Friday in the semifinal round of the Big South Conference tennis tournament.

Eventual champions High Point University (men) and Winthrop University (women) defeated the Phoenix en route to Saturday’s title matches. On the men’s side the Panthers and Phoenix split singles play. Phoenix players Pramote Malasitt, Nathan Lefevre and Richard Dutton earned victories at No. 1, No. 2 and No. 6 singles. The Phoenix’s third through fifth seeds, Thomas Rohof, Mikael Houlst and Justin Roberson, dropped matches to High Point. The Panthers took the No. 1 and No. 2 doubles matches to seal the win.

Top-seeded Winthrop University dropped the Phoenix women 4-0. The Eagles swept four singles matches; the No. 5 and No. 6 matches did not finish. Winthrop won two of three doubles matches to secure the victory.

The losses came a day after the Phoenix, along with seven of the eight top seeds, advanced in the conference tournament. The No. 3 Elon men defeated Radford University 4-0. Malasitt, Houlst and Roberson took singles points in the only three matches played. Elon’s top two doubles teams, Malasitt/Dutton and Lefevre/Houlst , earned doubles points to blank the Highlanders.

The No. 4 Elon women improved on last season’s first-round exit with a 4-3 victory over Charleston Southern University. The Phoenix split singles play with the Buccaneers, getting wins from Elizabeth Kernodle, Aubrey Rhoads and Cassie Martin at No. 3, No. 4 and No. 6. Kelly Fleck and Jennifer Fulmer earned a win at the No. 1 doubles spot, and Rhoads and Martin won at No. 3 to give the Phoenix the edge.

Inclement weather forced the tournament indoors following the first round. the semifinal and final matches were played at the Piedmont Indoor Tennis Center in Greensboro. Following Friday’s matches, Winthrop’s men’s and women’s teams, High Point’s men and Coastal Carolina University’s women advanced to the final round of the tournament.

Second-ranked High Point toppled top-seed Winthrop in the men’s final. The Panthers easily dispatched the Eagles, 4-0. They claimed wins at No. 1, No. 3 and no. 6 singles. Winthrop won its second consecutive women’s title, 4-2 over Coastal Carolina. Coastal Carolina won at No. 1 and No. 3 singles, but Jenny Andrade, Ana Maria Simanca and Renata Caceres battled back to earn the edge for the Eagles. Andrade and Simanca earned a win at No. 1 doubles. Renata Barreto rebounded from a straight-set loss at No. 1 singles to seal the win at No. 3 doubles with Caceres.