The back-and-forth clash at the McEwen Reserve courts ended 3-29 apiece, seeing Lemnos drop points for the first time this season and the Red-tinged McEwen outfit remain in the hunt for its first win of the season.
Tanner Hunter and Charlie Thomson ensured a winning 6-4 start for McEwen Reserve before Scott McHugh combined with Jennifer Smith (6-5) and Thomas Jeffreys (6-2) to snatch the next two rubbers and hand Lemnos a sturdy lead midway through the clash.
Hunter and Kylie Reither hit back to level things up, but Jeffreys and Smith's 6-4 win in the penultimate rubber swung the momentum firmly back to Lemnos, who held a three-game buffer heading into the decider.
With the onus on Hunter and an unlisted mystery teammate in the final set, the pair duly delivered.
A 6-3 win ensured Lemnos stepped off the courts with points in the bank, while the Reds will look ahead to an interclub derby against McEwen Reserve Gold in the mission to claim win number one.
Meanwhile, ladder leader Shepparton North again needed the final rubber to shake off another keen challenger, this time in the form of Kialla Park-Old Students Mavericks.
Dean Pritchett and Louise Dwyer’s 6-2 victory in the final rubber stole a two-game win for the 3–0 Northerners, with Pritchett’s successful collaborations with Helen Jackson (6-4) and Clark Pettigrew (6-2) delivering a streak-extending 28-26 result.
Yvette Ambrosini was in fine form alongside Esma Corbic (6-2) and Jake Sprunt (6-5) for the third-place Mavs, who will aim to rebound against Shepparton Lawn in round four.
Elsewhere, the McEwen derby between Gold and Green bore no resemblance to the neighbouring shootout between Red and Lemnos, with the Gold-tinted squad notching its first win of the campaign 5-32 to 1-18.
The KPOS Commandos were equally impressive, running out convincing 5-33 to 1-15 winners over Shepparton Lawn to round out a big night of results across the competition.
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