UNC women's tennis clinches fourth straight ACC regular-season title

The North Carolina women's tennis team entered Friday's match at Clemson having won 26 consecutive ACC regular-season matches.

But a potential victory over the Tigers represented the continuation of an even grander streak.

Winners of the past three regular-season conference titles, the second-ranked Tar Heels arrived at the Hoke Sloan Tennis Center looking to add another championship to their resume.

And on Friday, they did just that, sweeping No. 28 Clemson 7-0 to seize UNC's fourth straight ACC regular-season crown.

“It’s hard to be this consistent and this successful every year. I can’t take any credit whatsoever,” Coach Brian Kalbas said. “The players are the ones that do all the hard work, and this is one of the hardest-working teams I’ve ever had. 

"They put in a lot of time on the practice courts and in extra workouts, so it’s nice to see all that hard work pay off for them.”

First-year Jessie Aney and sophomore Cassandra Vazquez handed North Carolina (25-2, 13-0 ACC) an early edge in doubles play, defeating Clemson's Tristen Dewar and Jenny Moinard 6-2.

But then came perhaps the biggest surprise of the day on Court No. 1.

The top-ranked doubles team of Hayley Carter and Whitney Kay were upset by the unranked pair of Joana Eidukonyte and Fernanda Navarro 6-3. The match was the first loss for the Tar Heel duo since falling 6-4 on Feb. 20 against Michigan.

But just as the doubles point looked like it might go to the Tigers, senior Ashley Dai and first-year Chloe Ouellet-Pizer secured a 6-3 victory on Court No. 3.

“Winning a close doubles point was big for us,” Kalbas said. “Cassandra Vazquez stepped in for Kate (Vialle) and did a really good job. That kinda gave us some momentum.”

With the 1-0 lead from doubles play in hand, the Tar Heels looked to extend their lead in singles.

Sophomore Marika Akkerman quickly dismantled Jenny Moinard 6-1, 6-0. And Carter, motivated by her earlier stumble in doubles play, then pushed UNC's lead to 3-0 with a 6-1, 6-0 victory.

Moments later, Ouellet-Pizer clinched the win for North Carolina, riding the momentum from her strong doubles play to a 6-3, 6-0 win on Court No. 4. 

Aney pushed the Tar Heels' lead to 5-0 with a 6-2, 7-6 (7-0) victory before seniors Dai and Kay polished off the championship-winning match with a pair of super-breaker victories. 

“I thought our team did a really good job handling the adverse conditions,” Kalbas said. “There were times when the tennis wasn’t overly beautiful or spectacular, but we were able to be extremely competitive throughout. It was a whole team effort today.”

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