Women's tennis blanks Maryland

North Carolina women’s tennis coach Brian Kalbas understands that being the best can be too easy.

The Tar Heels (16-3, 3-0 ACC) were expecting the 7-0 shut out of Maryland (3-7, 0-5) Sunday. Kalbas thus took the opportunity to test his team by subjecting them to unfavorable weather conditions, resting his top player and mixing up doubles partners — and the Tar Heels responded.

The doubles team of Sanaz Marand and Gina Suarez-Malaguti struggled early in their match, but not because either of them were playing poorly.

“We haven’t really played with each other,” the senior Marand said of her doubles partner. “I think Coach just wanted to try something different.”

Kalbas said the lack of experience in playing together was evident in the first seven games in the match, at which point the duo was down 5-2.

“They hadn’t played together before or really even practiced together, so I think the first seven games they were making a lot of unforced errors, and they weren’t communicating very well together,” Kalbas said.

“They started having a lot more energy and being much more positive and kind of setting each other up much better, so I was really impressed with the way they came back.”

Marand and Suarez-Malaguti won the last six games of the match to take the victory 8-5 and give UNC the doubles point.

Marand continued her dominance into her singles match, dropping only one game to lead UNC to another victory in which the Tar Heels did not lose a set.

Suarez-Malaguti didn’t miss a beat, either. Playing in the No. 4 singles spot for North Carolina, the freshman defeated Maryland’s Jordan Hansbrough by blanking her in straight sets.

The Tar Heels recorded their ninth shutout of the year on Sunday and third in three ACC matches, even without top player Katrina Tsang.

Kalbas decided to rest Tsang Sunday — and Marand in Saturday’s 7-0 victory against Boston College — to save his top players for tougher competition and allow inexperienced players to get playing time.

“We were able to get some other people the opportunity to play,” Kalbas said.

“We have such a deep team, and we tried some different combinations in doubles this weekend, so we used it as a way to keep people fresh.”

In addition to simulating the loss of a top player, Kalbas forewent the option of playing indoors in Sunday’s cloudy conditions to give his players experience with playing against the elements at the Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center.

“It’s good just getting more matches in these conditions outside,” Tsang said. “It’s been really windy, and we’re just getting used to the outdoor tennis still.”

Even with the adverse weather conditions, the Tar Heels lost only 12 games in six singles matches.

Kalbas said that Sunday’s commanding victory reinforced his confidence in the Tar Heels’ depth.

But even with UNC continuing its comfortable schedule — the Tar Heels will face three straight opponents outside of the top 25 — the players are not going to take their opponents, or Kalbas’s adjustments, lightly.

“It’s actually tough because you still have to keep your focus,” Marand said. “Because you never know, anything could happen.”


Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.