Commentary on this story on Tuesday's Headlines Podcast .

It was more of the same for the Pinecrest and Scotland girls' tennis teams on the neutral Richmond County courts on Monday.

Tied for first place with identical 11-1 records, the two teams met for the third time this season to determine which team would receive the first seed from the Mid-Southeastern Conference in next week's state duals competition.

As in the previous matches that the teams split, this one went well into the evening, ending 5-4, with the victory going to the Scots this time.

"We played as hard as we could, I know I gave all I had," said the Patriots' Tanya Bator, who was the winner in the second singles and teamed with Kristin Anderson for a win in doubles. "I know all of the girls gave it their best effort."

Early in the singles matches, play was stopped for about an hour because of rain. When play was resumed, the coaches agreed to play one 8-game set instead of the usual two sets with a tiebreaker.

Bator and Morgan Maples were the only Patriots winners in the singles, as the Scots took a commanding 4-2 lead into the doubles. Playing under the lights, the Scots' Jessica Cook and Hannah Harling clinched the top seed with an 8-0 victory over Susi Priebe and Laura Brenner in the first doubles match to be completed.

The Patriots rallied to win the next two doubles with the last point recorded around the time the clock struck 8:30 p.m.

Bator and Kristin Anderson defeated Jesse Bode and Megan Brigman 8-6 in the second doubles. In the concluding doubles between the Patriots' Maples and Lyndsey Anderson, and the Scots' Christian Minnick and Lindsay Garrison, the fans got behind their teams as if the entire outcome of the match depended on their efforts.

There were few service breaks as the Scots won the last game, tying the match at 8-8, forcing a 10-point tiebreaker. Tied at 6-6, the Patriot pair began taking control after a slam at the net by Maples was followed by a deep lob from Anderson, making it 8-6. The last two Patriot points in the 10-7 win came on another smash at the net by Maples and a double fault on serve by the Scots.

Pinecrest coach Ann Anderson thought that shortening the singles might have worked to her team's disadvantage.

"I was a little disappointed because of the rain and having to play 8-game pro-sets," she said afterward. "I think we're a little bit better at endurance. If we could have played the best two out of three sets it might have made a difference.

"We had several players that had a tough day and Scotland is a good team."

The Pats and the Scots join the other teams in the conference championships, beginning this afternoon and ending Thursday at the Pinehurst Resort. Undefeated Jessica Cook of the Scots will be the first seed in the singles.

Each team can enter three singles and three doubles teams, but no player can be entered in both. The five best singles and doubles teams advance to regional competition. Susie Priebe (14-1), Bator (12-3) and Hailey Cioccolanti (1-0) are expected to represent the Patriots in the singles. The doubles teams are expected to be Maples-Lyndsey Anderson, Kristin Anderson-Mary Vess and Sarah Wilkison-Victoria Van Vliet.

State team duals competition begins next Tuesday.

Scotland 5, Pinecrest 4

Singles -- Jessica Cook (SC) def. Susi Priebe 8-2; Tanya Bator (P) def. Jesse Bode 8-4; Hannah Harling (SC) def. Kristin Anderson 8-4; Lindsay Garrison (SC) def. Lyndsey Anderson 8-6; Morgan Maples (P) def. Megan Brigman 8-4; Christian Minnick (SC) def. Laura Brenner 8-3.

Doubles -- Cook-Harling (SC) def. Priebe-Brenner 8-0; Bator-K. Anderson (P) def. Bode-Brigman 8-6; Maples-L. Anderson (P) def. Garrison-Minnick 8-8 (10-7).