After knocking out the No. 1 seed, Irina Falconi couldn’t help but feel confident.

But the quarterfinals brought a new challenge Friday during the Heartland Clinic USTA Women’s Tennis Classic at Noyes Tennis Complex. Falconi was the favorite against Olga Boulytcheva but needed to survive a tiebreaker to secure her spot in the semifinals, winning 4-6, 6-1, 7-6, (9-7).

“It is very important to come into a tournament with the mentality that you can win the whole thing,” Falconi said. “Once you get to the semifinals, anything can happen. It is wide open from here.”

Falconi eliminated No. 1 seed Coco Vandeweghe in Thursday’s second round to set up the matchup with Boulytcheva.

Falconi lost the first set in each matchup before rallying to win. Falconi, a sophomore at Georgia Tech, is no stranger to competing in tournaments on the USTA Circuit, and she even won a tournament in Atlanta two weeks ago.

Falconi added to her day in the afternoon doubles semifinals, teaming with Ashley Weinhold to reach today’s final. They will face third-seeded Chelsea Orr and Caitlin Whoriskey.

The USTA is celebrating its 30th anniversary as well as the sixth year the women’s tournament has been played in St. Joseph. The tournament is a breeding ground for future stars as many current professional tennis players have come up through the circuit.

“Top pro’s like Andre Agassi and Maria Sharapova have all played right here in St. Joe,” said press aide Cindy Cornelius. “All these girls you are seeing here in this tournament are future stars you will see on TV in the coming years.”

The $10,000 challenge resumes with today’s singles semifinals starting at 10 a.m., followed by the championship of the doubles game. As it has been all week, admission is free.

“We have great sponsorship and the community support is amazing,” Cornelius said. “We have a nice facility here, and it is a great chance for the community to see some future professional tennis stars right here in St. Joe.”

Sports correspondent Travis Hartman can be reached at npsports@npgco.com