It's especially tough when an athlete competes against someone with whom he's practiced for months beforehand.
As fate would have it, this chess match was forced upon UNC's Trystan Meniane and Andy Metzler, who met in the semifinals of the ACC Men's Indoor Championships on Sunday.
Metzler ended up winning the contest in three sets, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, before losing in the finals of the weekend tournament at the Wake Forest Indoor Tennis Center.
Metzler's success was due to both his aggressive play and the slow start of Meniane, who hadn't won the first set of a match since the second round.
"As a match goes on the pressure comes on, and I play well," Meniane said. "But in the beginning I start slow, and the next thing I know, I'm down a set."
After the grueling three-setter with his teammate, Metzler had to meet Georgia Tech's sixth-seeded Joao Menano an hour later. Menano won in three sets, 0-6, 7-6, (8-6), 6-2.
"I think the (semifinal) match wore the two out, but it was good considering the two players that were playing," said UNC assistant coach Marc Schwartz .
In the finals, Metzler was on fire throughout the first set, trouncing Menano 6-0 and hitting 11 winners.
In fact, Menano didn't win a point on Metzler's serve until the second set, when Metzler double faulted. Later in the second set, Menano earned a few more break chances as Metzler cooled off.
