Clutch doesn’t even begin to describe what junior captain Shinann Featherston pulled off in front of a wild crowd at Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center on Sunday.
With the sixth-ranked North Carolina women’s team knotted at 3-3 with 15th–ranked Georgia at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Kick-off Weekend Championship, all eyes were on the second court and Georgia’s Maho Kowase and Featherston.
In gut-wrenching fashion, Featherston rallied past Kowase in three sets, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-2), as she lifted her team to the 4-3 victory.
“I knew my team needed me so I just fought as hard as I could,” Featherston said.
And fought she did in a wild dual match featuring the 2010 NCAA Women’s Tennis Singles Champion and competitor in the 2010 U.S. Open, Georgia’s Chelsey Gullickson. The contest contained down-to-the-wire doubles matches with controversial calls, arguments and body paint — a three set thriller and a decisive third set tiebreaker after five hours of tennis.
“I’m kind of at a loss for words right now because it’s amazing to see what this team is capable of doing this season,” UNC coach Brian Kalbas said. “To beat a talented team like Georgia — they have the No. 1 recruiting class and they are a powerful team in my opinion — and to do that and the way they did it, just fighting and competing, and winning the doubles the way we did was a huge momentum thing for us.”
Featherston and sophomore Lauren McHale beat Gullickson and Kate Fuller 8-6 while the combination of senior Jelena Durisic and freshman Tessa Lyons heartily fought their way past Kowase and Lilly Kimbell 8-6.
The Tar Heels entered singles needing three wins to clinch the match. Junior Haley Hemm handled Kate Fuller 6-1, 6-2 and Gina Suarez-Malaguti defeated Kimbell 6-0, 6-4 after trailing in the second set 1-4.
“The second set I kind of backed off a little bit and started not hitting the ball as hard and stuff,” Saurez-Malaguti said. “She started hitting a lot more solid, but (assistant coach Sara Anundsen) helped a lot. She just kept saying, ‘It’s OK, it’s OK.’ So, I kind of got my confidence back a little more, and I pulled it off.”
