BEAUMONT, Texas — Northwestern State tennis continued its strong fall showing Friday at the Joe Pyburn Invitational, advancing four players to the semifinals after a gritty day of singles quarterfinal play. 

"We had a good day," head coach Marcos Morelli said. "Across the board we competed the way we want to compete. Different players were tested in different ways, but the standard stayed the same. That's what I liked most." 

In Flight A, senior Zoi Spyrou battled through one of the day's most competitive matches, edging McNeese's Erica Hagi 6-4, 7-6(5), 10-8. 

"Those two showed real maturity," Morelli said of Spyrou and Martina Acebedo Bonocore. "Those matches can get messy at the end, but they stayed calm in the tough moments and trusted their patterns. That's exactly how we want to close matches in the spring." 

Spyrou moved to the semifinals to play against Louisiana Tech's Diana Starodubtseva in Saturday's action. 

Junior Honoka Umeda extended her impressive form this fall with another straight-sets victory, defeating LSU-Alexandria's Ekaterina Orlova 6-4, 6-4 in Flight B, moving to the semis to play against a conference foe, Southeastern's Aitana Datar. 

Joining her in the Flight B semifinals, Acebedo Bonocore showed resilience after a slow start. The sophomore rallied from a first-set loss to knock off McNeese's Alexa Martinez Mendoza 2-6, 6-2, 10-4, playing Southeastern's Adriana Tirado Marin in the next round. 

In Flight C, Athina Grigoriadou cruised past Lamar's Savannah Bijlsma 6-3, 6-2, advancing with a commanding performance to the semis to play Southeastern's Paige Duncan. 

"You can tell they understand what we're trying to build," Morelli said. "We're moving in the right direction, but there's still a lot of work to do and they know that." 

Despite strong efforts, Maria Farina fell 6-2, 6-3, to McNeese's Elena Morales Dorantes, and Lolita Hukasian dropped a tight 6-4, 6-4, decision to Southeastern's Mariam Tetradze in Flight D. 

"Tomorrow is just another opportunity to do the right things," Morelli said. "Same focus, same energy, same discipline. If we stay with our identity, the results will come." 

The Lady Demons return to the courts Saturday for semifinal play as Spyrou, Umeda, Bonocore, and Grigoriadou aim to advance to the championship rounds. 

Northwestern State Lady Demons 
Joe Pyburn Invitational - Beaumont, Texas 
Singles Quarterfinals - Friday 

Flight A 
Zoi Spyrou (NSU) vs. Erica Hagi (MCN) 6-4, 7-6(5), 10-8 

Flight B 
Honoka Umeda (NSU) def. Ekaterina Orlova (LSU-A) 6-4, 6-4 
Martina Acebedo Bonocore (NSU) def. Alexa Martinez Mendoza (MCN) 2-6, 6-2, 10-4 

Flight C 
Elena Morales Dorantes (MCN) def. Maria Farina (NSU) 6-2, 6-3 
Athina Grigoriadou (NSU) def. Savannah Bijlsma (LU) 6-3, 6-2 

Flight D 
Mariam Tetradze (SLU) def. Lolita Hukasian (NSU) 6-4, 6-4