UNC men's tennis sweeps No. 7 Illinois in top-10 matchup

The North Carolina men’s tennis team entered its match on Saturday night knowing it needed top-level performances from every player to come away with a victory over No. 7 Illinois.

And in the match at the Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center, the No. 10 Tar Heels’ depth proved to be the difference in a 4-0 sweep against the Fighting Illini.

Senior Brett Clark and sophomore Robert Kelly started the match with a 6-4 victory in doubles. Following an Illinois victory on Court No. 3, juniors Brayden Schnur and Jack Murray clinched the doubles point in a tiebreaker with a tight 7-6 (5) victory.

Clark and Kelly both opened singles play with wins, leaving the team only one point short of securing its biggest win of the season.

Schnur was entrenched in a tight battle going into the third set. Junior Ronnie Schneider was down going into a second set tiebreaker.

As these matches unfolded, Murray continued playing on Court No. 4, unaware of the significance of his match.

“I honestly had no idea what the score was the whole time,” Murray said. “We can’t see the scoreboard from over there. When all of the guys came over and started clapping on my match point, I kind of assumed this could be the clincher.”

After winning the first set 6-0, Murray dropped the second 0-6. But after finding his rhythm again in the deciding third set, he clinched the match with a 6-1 win.

As has been the case through the first three weekends of its spring season, the team was once again carried to victory by a different player.

“I think that’s going to bode well that we know, even if we’re down in a match, the rest of the guys are going to step up and come up with a win for us,” Clark said.

With a match against No. 2 Oklahoma next Sunday, Coach Sam Paul knows everyone must continue to improve.

“We’ve got to be playing better at all spots. I think we played better tonight than we did last weekend up top,” he said. “We’ve got to be competitive at all six spots against the good teams.”

Schnur and Schneider both are working their way back from injuries. Schnur is battling what Paul believes is tendinitis, while Schneider is still feeling the effects of an injured ankle.

“We know they are going to get it together,” Clark said. “The rest of the guys are just going to have to do their part.”

Having so many players step up early in the season gives the team confidence that once their top two players get back to full health, they will be able to compete with anyone they step on the court against.

“I think that’s why we’re a top-10 team right now,” Clark said. “I think on any given day, anyone on our team can step up.”

@CPhillips2020

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