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(04/20/07 4:00am)
A year ago, the North Carolina men's tennis team was sent home early after a disappointing 4-2 loss to Florida State in the first round of the ACC Tournament. This year's squad hopes to avoid a similar fate this weekend, as it enters the tournament with the second seed.
"It was a terrible feeling," junior Benjamin Carlotti said of last year's loss. "The mistake was that we were looking forward to the second match to play Duke. We'll try not to make the same mistake this year and try to focus on the first match."
The No. 6 Tar Heels (21-2, 9-2) earned a bye in the first round and the right to play the winner of Thursday's match between N.C. State and Virginia Tech on Friday at the Cary Tennis Park.
UNC beat both teams in the regular season, but only by the slimmest of margins. Both matches were 4-3, with the clinching point coming in the last match on the court.
"It's going to be a war," said UNC coach Sam Paul, who received his fifth ACC Coach of the Year title Thursday. "We've got to get ready to play whoever we have to play."
UNC got to this point with one of the most successful regular seasons in school history. After a 20-0 start, the team looked poised to further its legacy, but two late setbacks against Duke and Virginia cost the Tar Heels the top spot in the ACC.
Despite the losses, UNC enters the event with high expectations.
"In the tournament, it's a match every day, so it comes down to who can run the most and who is in the best shape," Carlotti said. "I think that we've been working the whole year for that, and it was one of our main goals, so I think we'll be ready."
Carlotti also said the team has a mental edge coming into the tournament that past UNC teams lacked.
"We're much more confident," he said. "We know that we can do well, especially since in the last two years we've been doing well consistently. I think before that, every time we beat a good team we were surprised."
Part of the team's success this season is because of two freshmen from California, who immediately made their presence known. Stefan Hardy and recently named ACC Freshman of the Year Chris Kearney will have their maturity and poise tested in their first ACC Tournament.
"I think they'll be ready by now," Paul said. "We played a really tough schedule and faced all of them before. So it's just another match on another day."
UNC has won an ACC-best 25 conference titles, the most recent of which came in 2002. But with 10 teams in the conference finishing in the nation's top 50, the road will not be an easy one.
"In this tournament, everyone is good, so anything can happen," said captain Sebastian Guejman, the team's only senior. "You have got to be ready for everything."
Guejman said he feels comfortable turning over the reins to the next generation of Tar Heels following the postseason.
"The juniors have done a good job, and the freshmen, too. I know that they'll do well, and hopefully even better next year."
The team has improved its status on the national stage in the last three years, but Paul said the Tar Heels still aren't satisfied with their ranking.
"We're not happy being six. There's five more places to go."
Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
(04/17/07 4:00am)
The No. 2 North Carolina baseball team can be seen around campus sporting a new look. But the clean-cut style is not the result of a fashion statement.
Rather, following a doubleheader against Duke on Saturday, the Tar Heels celebrated their inaugural Cuts for a Cure program by shaving their heads.
The effort raised more than $5,000 to help N.C. Children's Promise combat cancer and will be donated in honor of assistant coach Chad Holbrook's son Reece and student manager Chase Jones, both of whom are battling the illness.
"Cancer has touched our program ever since I arrived here nine years ago," coach Mike Fox said.
"Just in a small way we can help, and it's a small price to pay. Once the kids get over not having any hair, they realize that this is real, this is life, and that's what we're trying to prepare them for."
The effort began four weeks ago after Adam Lucas, publisher and executive editor of Tar Heel Monthly magazine, came up with the idea. For every $100 raised, one player would shave his head.
"It's just hair," senior Robert Woodard said after shedding a full head of it. "And it's for such a good cause, so we're all glad to do it."
The effort surpassed the goal by so much that the coaching staff, trainer and team manager all jumped on board and went bald.
"The most rewarding thing to me was that they were all really excited about it," Fox said. "I never heard one negative word about it. Guys are a little bit vain, especially athletes, about how they look, but I just think we've got a good bunch."
The team took turns getting shaved in groups of three, starting with the trio of Woodard and juniors Reid Fronk and Andrew Carignan, who began the day with the most hair. Three UNC players, including sophomore Mike Cavasinni, played the role of barber.
"It was definitely a lot of fun," Cavasinni said. "Reid and Woodard had inches and inches of hair, and with the first buzzer going though and watching it fall to the ground, it was a good time."
The fundraising effort was not the first deed UNC has done to help the community. The team is involved in an elementary school reading program and also delivered gifts to a Carrboro family for Christmas.
"It's a way for the team to not get caught up in their own little world, their own little comfort zone here, which is easy to do for college students," Fox said. "Hopefully it makes them more aware of how fortunate their life is."
The effort left a lasting impression not only on the recipients, but also on the team, as cancer has touched many members of the North Carolina baseball community.
"You have a place for them in your heart, and being able to do anything you can, you want to do that for them," Cavasinni said.
N.C. Children's Promise and Cuts for a Cure still are accepting donations via the baseball section of www.tarheelblue.com.
Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
(04/16/07 4:00am)
It was a historic weekend for two members of the No. 2 North Carolina baseball team, as the Tar Heels took two of three from visiting Duke at Boshamer Stadium.
Senior pitcher Robert Woodard threw a complete game shutout Friday night to secure his 30th career victory, tying him with Michael Hoog for the most wins in school history and making him just the 19th pitcher in ACC history with 30 wins.
"(Woodard) has got a big heart and a will to win," head coach Mike Fox said. "He's just a great competitor, and he's worked himself into being probably one of the best pitchers in Carolina baseball history."
Freshman standout Dustin Ackley saw his hitting streak come to an end with an 0-5 effort in the second game of the series, but not before extending it to 28 games, good for third on the all-time list.
"Obviously Ackley's hitting streak was terrific," Fox said. "What he's done in our first 35 games has been amazing."
It was Woodard's third career complete-game shutout that sparked the 7-0 win in the series opener Friday night. He allowed nine hits, but handled base runners well and struck out four to keep Duke (23-15, 4-14 in the ACC) off the scoreboard.
"I felt like my fastball was there when I needed it, but for the most part innings one through nine I felt like my slider and my change-up were keeping hitters off balance enough," Woodard said. "And the defense was making plays behind me."
In the second game, freshman starting pitcher Alex White was unable to follow Woodard's example, as he lasted only 2 2/3 innings. The six runs charged to him in the third inning marked the worst defensive inning for the Tar Heels (32-6, 13-5) this year. UNC bats also were too quiet to make up the deficit in the 9-3 loss.
"Today's first game was really disappointing," Fox said. "We just weren't ready, we took some bad swings, and we didn't pitch well. The whole game is predicated on starting pitching, and their pitching was outstanding and ours wasn't."
That also marked the end of Ackley's hit streak. After being named midseason freshman of the year by Baseball America, Ackley's streak finished as the longest UNC tear since 1990.
"It's time to start a new one I guess, and just keep rolling with it," Ackley said. "Hopefully I can finish the second half like I did the first half."
Because of Sunday's forecasted rain, the series' second and third games were played as a Saturday doubleheader. The Tar Heels bounced back to win the third game 7-4 and took the series.
A solid five-inning outing by sophomore Adam Warren and a home run by junior Josh Horton highlighted the win. Ackley bounced back with two hits, and junior relief pitcher Andrew Carignan put in a rare three-inning outing of shutout pitching.
Following the series the team concluded a fundraising effort by shaving their heads in celebration of the money the Tar Heels raised to prevent/cure cancer.
"Cancer has touched our program ever since I arrived here nine years ago," Fox said.
"In a small way we can help, and this is a small price to pay. I think once the kids get over not having any hair they'll realize that this is real, this is life, and that's what we're trying to prepare them for."
Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
(04/12/07 4:00am)
The No. 5 North Carolina men's tennis team had its hopes of an undefeated season dashed Wednesday, as visiting Duke dealt the Tar Heels their first loss by a score of 5-2.
The defeat came in front of an electric crowd of more than 500 fans at the Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center, which might have put pressure on the young Tar Heel team.
"(The atmosphere) may have affected some people's play," head coach Sam Paul said. "We got away from the fundamental stuff that we work on."
The match began with the Tar Heels (20-1, 8-1) surrendering the doubles point for the first time this year, which allowed the No. 16 Blue Devils (14-7, 6-2) to jump to an early lead and set the tone for the match.
"You've got to give Duke credit," Paul said. "They outplayed us. They're a very good team, defending champions from last year. They executed better than us, you've got to give them credit."
The day began by honoring the lone UNC senior, Sebastian Guejman, in his last home match.
"I was really excited, looking forward to this match," he said. "Unfortunately, it didn't turn out our way."
Because of inclement weather, the match was forced indoors, which was not an advantage for UNC.
"They're a very good indoor team, and it's unfortunate that we got to play them indoors," sophomore Taylor Fogleman said. "They managed their game really well today indoors, but we'd like to get them outdoors."
Fogleman was one of two Tar Heels to win his singles match, as freshman Stefan Hardy won at the second seed.
Their matches included two of the seven sets that went into a tiebreak, in a contest that was closer than the final score indicates.
But it was these pressure situations that the Tar Heels were unable to capitalize on, which ultimately led to UNC's first loss of the year.
The wins by Fogleman and Hardy appeared to be the beginnings of a UNC comeback after being down 3-0, but a loss by junior Will Plyler at the sixth seed clinched the loss.
Paul said that executing under pressure was a major source of trouble for UNC in the match, and from this point the pressure keeps building.
The Tar Heels will face No. 38 Virginia Tech on Friday and No. 2 Virginia on Sunday in two matches with critical ACC implications.
"If you keep fighting and fighting, anything can happen, especially in college tennis," Fogleman said. "In a couple spots, we just need to fight a little harder, and this loss could turn into a 'W' against Virginia or Virginia Tech."
The defeat was UNC's 11th regular-season loss to Duke in as many years, and it also gave Duke a 9.5 to 8.5 lead in this year's Carlyle Cup, with eight points still hanging in the balance.
Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
(02/27/07 5:00am)
Eleven years ago, Tripp Phillips embarked upon a wild journey that began in Chapel Hill. This journey made stops at some of the most hallowed grounds in the tennis world before completing its full circle and arriving back in Chapel Hill this year.
The former All-American, who graduated from UNC in 2000, put his professional tennis career on hold to return to the North Carolina program as a full-time assistant coach.
"There's just something about the college environment that is really fun," Phillips said. "It was a great opportunity for me to come back and work for Coach Paul who has been a mentor for me as well as a good friend."
Phillips' career came to its crowning moment in September when he advanced as part of an unseeded doubles team to the semifinals of the U.S. Open.
"That was an amazing experience," he said. "The great thing about doing well at the U.S. Open is that it's taking place in America so my friends and family could come and share in it. I've worked at it for a long time so it was very gratifying to be able to do so well on a big stage."
Another highlight of Phillips' professional career came in 2004 during his first match in a Grand Slam tournament, in which he was fortunate enough to play on Centre Court at Wimbledon.
"You can really feel the tradition," Phillips said. "I've been dreaming about playing at Centre Court at Wimbledon since I was five, so it is definitely something I'll always remember."
Despite his success on the professional tour, the incessant traveling and the lure of Chapel Hill ultimately brought Phillips back to the UNC program and his former coach.
"He was one of the best that we've ever had here," head coach Sam Paul said. "He was the smartest player that I've ever coached as far as seeing and understanding the court, so it's great to have him on the coaching staff now full time because he brings all of those qualities."
Phillips said it was his start at North Carolina that allowed him to attain a career-high doubles ranking of No. 29 in the world and play in some of the most prestigious tennis tournaments in the world.
"I owe most of my success on the pro tour to my time here at Carolina," he said. "Everything I did on the pro tour was just a continuation of the things I did in college. Carolina was instrumental to my doing well on the tour."
During his college career, Phillips saw time in the top singles spot for his last three years at UNC, and finished his senior year ranked No. 12 in the nation.
After he graduated, he passed up the typical training facilities in places like California and Florida to continue to train as a professional in UNC's Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center.
Now after six years of chasing his dream, he has wound up at the very place that he feels most comfortable, and the next generation of Tar Heels is reaping the benefits of his experience.
"His experience is priceless," junior Lenny Gullan said. "Tripp's been on the big stage, so he knows what it takes to be successful. I think that helps us a lot here on the college level because he helps us understand how to treat every match as seriously as the next, whether we're playing an unranked team or a top-10 team."
Phillips now will try to help lead the 2006-07 Tar Heels to the same heights that he strove for less than 10 years ago as a collegiate athlete.
"I feel like I'm in a good position to help guys that are trying to do the same thing that I just have done," he said.
"I've had so many people help me along the way, so it feels good to try to give back some. And I've always loved Chapel Hill, so it feels like home."
Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
(01/30/07 5:00am)
Heading down south did not turn out the way the North Carolina women's tennis team would have liked, as they fell to No. 2 Florida 4-3 Sunday afternoon at the Ring Tennis Complex. Coach Brian Kalbas hopes heading in the opposite direction will result in a better outcome. The Tar Heels will leave Tuesday for Madison, Wis., to join 15 other teams at the ITA National Team Indoor Championships. Kalbas said he told his players that he was pleased with the effort they put forth against Florida. He also said the match in Gainesville will be a great learning experience for the entire team. "We've put ourselves in a position, if we can learn from it, to really have a special season," Kalbas said. "We've got good senior leadership, and we've got talented players down the line." The Tar Heels have been solid all season securing the doubles point, but the Gators' relentless attack led to a quick 1-0 lead, and ultimately, the deciding point. UNC seniors Jenna Long and Sara Anundsen, ranked No. 16 in the nation, won their doubles match 8-1 against the No. 14 team of Whitney Benik and Nina Suvak, but the Gators took the other two doubles contests 9-7 and 9-8 (3). "Winning that doubles point is a huge momentum for the team that gets it," Anundsen said. "I don't think our team played the best tennis we could have played." Long, who was named the ACC women's tennis player of the week Monday, defeated No. 11 Diana Srebrovic in singles play. Anundsen and Austin Smith also won singles matches for UNC, but the team came up a point short and failed to duplicate last season's exciting victory against the Gators. North Carolina won't have much time to regroup because it will face a large pool of qualified competitors throughout the weekend. All but two teams are ranked in the top 20. "The fact that we lost 4-3 and we weren't playing our best tennis is something we can take positively from the match," Anundsen said. "We're playing all these top-20 teams, so that gives us a lot of confidence." UNC will compete next at 10 a.m. Thursday against No. 16 Texas Christian University. The Tar Heels will be able to get in two practices on Wednesday, and Kalbas said the close match against Florida gives UNC an advantage. "Having dealt with pressure situations against a really good team, that is really going to help us in this tournament." Fencing struggles at Penn State Duals over weekend The fencing team reached the midway point of its season on Saturday, when it struggled to a 2-7 finish against a very competitive field at the Penn State Duals. The men finished 1-3, while the women went 1-4. Both teams notched their only win against Drew University. The Duals drew some of the toughest teams in the nation. Both teams faced Ohio State, Penn and St. John's, all of whom regularly appear in the top 10 in the nation. The women's team also competed against Temple. "We fenced some of the hardest competition all year," freshman Jennifer Sawicki said. "We really rallied and fought to the last bouts." Sawicki finished with a 7-7 record for the weekend. Each of these opponents have a distinct recruiting advantage over UNC's program because their athletic programs offer fencing scholarships. North Carolina's team is predominantly walk-ons. According to assistant coach Josh Webb, it was close bouts and a lack of focus that troubled the Tar Heels at Penn State. "If you look at just wins and losses, we didn't do that great," he said. "If you look at how we actually competed, it was much better." There were a lot of 5-4 bouts lost that could have gone either way and wound up costing UNC in the end, Webb said. Senior Joe Pipkin finished with the Tar Heels' best record at 6-2. Sophomore Bobby Ziechmann and senior captain Courtney Krolikoski also turned in near-.500 records. With half of the season under its belt, the team will treat this as a wake-up call and look to build off of it in the second half of competition. "We need to be more assertive in how we control bouts," senior captain Mike Burkhart said. "We need to not fence into their game and take control ourselves." The next time the Tar Heels fence will be this weekend in the UCSD Duals in San Diego, which will feature opponents such as Stanford, Air Force, and host UC-San Diego. "We definitely have the talent and drive," Sawicki said. "Now we should start peaking and making it all come together." Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
(01/26/07 5:00am)
There are some college coaches whose names alone command awe and wonder: JoePa, Bowden, Summitt, the Dean. One less known North Carolina coach, though, has accomplished a feat that none of these legends can claim.
Fencing head coach Ron Miller, who started the varsity fencing program at UNC in 1967 and has been with the team ever since, has racked up more than 1,000 wins in his illustrious career.
(01/19/07 5:00am)
The fencing team opened this year's schedule with a trial-by-fire. Within the first three competitions, the Tar Heels stood toe-to-toe with some of the nation's best, including an NYU Dual Meet that featured five perennial top 15 programs.
Despite the tough start to the year, North Carolina looks to have a promising young squad that will continue to develop as the year progresses. On Saturday, the Tar Heels travel to Philadelphia to compete in the Haverford Duals, where they hope to improve their record and build toward the postseason.