By Randy Walker
@TennisPublisher
The University of North Carolina women’s tennis team, made up entirely of American players, won its first NCAA championship Saturday night with a 4-1 win over state rival North Carolina State 4-1 at the U.S. Tennis Association National Campus in Orlando, Florida.
After winning the doubles point, the Tar Heels got a clutch victory at No. 2 singles by the bubbly Fiona Crawley of San Antonio, Texas, who beat N.C. State’s Alana Smith of Fort Washington, Md., 6-2, 7-6(2). Crawley, ranked No. 1 in the ITA national college singles rankings but playing in the No. 2 position on her team, won a tenacious sudden-death deuce point that was a set-point with Smith serving at 6-5 in the second-set. The point seemed to have a lasting effect on Smith as Crawley cruised to win the second-set tiebreaker 7-2 to give North Carolina its second point. About 20 minutes later, both Elizabeth Scotty of Annapolis, Md., at No. 4 singles and Carson Tanguilig of Alpharetta, Ga., at No. 3 singles were just points away from winning their respective matches and clinching the title for North Carolina. Both had match point at the same time and Scotty started and finished her match point first and defeated Abigail Rencheli of Sarasota, Fla., 7-6 (7), 6-3. Then Tanguilig clinched the title for the Tar Heels winning her match point and defeating Amelia Rajecki of Nottingham, England 6-4, 4-6, 6-3.
“I don’t think that I believed that I won the match when I did, and I don’t remember that match point at all,” said Tanquilig. “So when people are sending me videos. I don’t remember that at all. But it’s just like I can’t describe it….It’s just what we’ve been working for all year. I have never been a part of a closer team. I’ve only been here two years, but these girls are my best friends and I think our closeness definitely helped us today and our edge and our willingness to change things up a little bit when necessary as a team. It just means the world to me, and we got the big one finally.”
The Wolfpack won their lone point at No. 1 singles where Diana Shaider of Russia, the amazing freshman who reached the second round of the Australian Open this year and holds a No. 104 WTA world ranking, defeated North Carolina’s Reese Brantmeier of Wisconsin 6-3, 6-4.
Shnaider is one of the five non-American players on the nine-player N.C. State roster.
While the title is the first for the Tar Heels in the NCAA team tournament, the did win the last four ITA National Indoor Team Championship. It was the third meeting of the season between the Tar Heels and Wolfpack. UNC beat NCSU, 7-0, during the regular season in Chapel Hill, only to see NC State hand Carolina its lone loss of the season prior to Saturday, beating the Tar Heels, 4-1, in the ACC Championship match in late April. UNC was making its first appearance in the NCAA championship match since 2014.
Said UNC coach Brian Kalbas, “When I first came to Carolina, my dream was to be a part of the National Championship club. We won seven indoor titles and we’ve never won this one. It just was very elusive. For it to be this year with this team means the world for me personally, because I know we’ve had great teams in the past and every every team every year kind of led to this year.”
