UNC women's tennis records two shutouts Wednesday

The North Carolina women’s tennis team defeated Elon and UNC-Greensboro 7-0 Wednesday in its first day of dual matches.

The Tar Heels only lost one match during the course of the day, the No. 1 doubles matchup against Elon.

“We struggled a little bit in doubles, just kind of getting comfortable with everything,” coach Brian Kalbas said. “But I really was just pleased with how we stepped up in singles and came out and set the tone.”

Against Elon, freshman Caroline Price made her debut in the one spot, beating her opponent 6-0, 6-4. Price also played No. 3 against UNC-G and only allowed one point, claiming another win 6-0, 6-1.

“A freshman playing No. 1 was a big statement for her, getting her first win playing in the top position,” Kalbas said. “But overall, I think we had some players that had some good experience in the first match of the season.”

Later in the day, against the Spartans, UNC also struggled in only one match.

The No. 1 singles match lasted more than two hours, with each of the two sets ending in close scores.

UNC’s Zoe De Bruycker beat UNC-G’s Niltooli Wilkins 7-5 in each of the No. 1 matchup’s two sets, but the competition was tighter than the 2-0 score showed.

“I definitely didn’t play my best, and I knew she was a good player,” De Bruycker said. “I played her last season and knew it wasn’t going to be an easy match. Obviously I just had to pull through and tough it out in the end.”

De Bruycker commented on several personal notes that she made for herself during the long match, but also was proud of ending in two sets.

Senior Shinann Featherston, who also claimed a 6-0, 6-1 victory over her Spartan opponent in singles, says she also played less than her best, but for a different reason.

Although Featherston played this past weekend in a tournament in Las Vegas, Featherston’s match tonight was her first dual match back after an ACL surgery during the off-season.

“Coming back home and being able to play a match here and watch my teammates really encouraged me to do well,” Featherston said. “It gave me a lot of confidence for the season. I mean, I’m still not completely as quick as I was — I’m probably back to 80 percent of what I was, moving-wise — but if I am confident and mentally tough out there, I feel like I can make up for it.”

“It was just a good first match back playing dual matches with the team, and hopefully we’ll have a really successful season.”

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