What happens in Vegas doesn't necessarily stay there.
Four members of the North Carolina women’s tennis team bring back valuable experience in their return to Chapel Hill after turning in a strong performance in the Freeman Memorial Tennis Championships in Las Vegas over the weekend.
In a field full of some of the best players and teams in the nation, junior Whitney Kay and sophomore Hayley Carter both advanced to the semifinals of the singles draw, and joined forces to make it all the way to the championship match in doubles before ultimately falling.
Coach Brian Kalbas was encouraged with those two players' performances, both as individuals and as a newfound doubles pairing.
“I’m real pleased with them,” he said. “It was a great feat for them to get all the way to the finals. They really gelled well and had a lot of fun playing together. Whitney’s just playing so much better individually and Hayley has been such a great leader for us, both on and of the court.”
As for the other two players the Tar Heels brought along, freshmen Marika Akkerman and Cassandra Vazquez, Kalbas said although they did not fair as well on the scoreboard, it was key to get the two highly touted recruits some on court repetitions against some stout opposition. The duo lost in consolation doubles.
“It’s one of the toughest tournaments in the country,” he said. “But they gained some valuable experience and I think we’re going to need them going into the spring.”
UNC as a whole comes into the spring season ranked No. 4 in the country, and already boasts a 2-0 mark. Coming off a heartbreaking defeat to UCLA in the national championship match a season ago, this year's Tar Heels return five of the six players that started singles matches in that narrow defeat.
Included in the returnees are three players ranked in the nations top 40, led by No. 8 Jamie Loeb. Kalbas said that the returning players, combined with the freshmen, give his team a chance to yet again compete for NCAA title.
