It ain’t over ‘till it’s over.
Despite dropping to 3-1 after losing the doubles point and falling on Courts 1 and 2, No. 11 NC State surged late past No. 24 Florida to secure a bid to the ITA National Team Indoor Championships with a 4-3 victory.
NC State (5-0) and its top doubles pairing, junior Gabriella Broadfoot and freshman Victoria Osuigwe, coming off their victory at the 2025 NCAA DI Women’s Tennis Championships in the fall, took care of business 6-4 in their match against No. 17 Nikola Daubnerova and Xinyi Nong. But their efforts became a footnote in the team’s matchup versus Florida (2-1) as the Pack fell way behind before claiming three-straight victories on the lower courts to win.
NC State had been untested up until this point, winning each of its first four matches 7-0 against East Tennessee State, Campbell, North Carolina Central and UNC-Greensboro. Against the Gators for its first Power Four matchup of the year, NC State proved why it is a national contender seemingly every year, despite showing weaknesses early.
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No. 31 Mia Slama fell on Court 2 in straight sets 7-5, 6-4. No. 29 Broadfoot fell on Court 1, losing her final set 6-0. The Pack could not afford to drop another match, and it seemed like it was running out of steam.
Under that pressure, NC State got it done on Courts 3-6, winning all four matches. It all came down to a thriller on Court 5 as the Class of 2025 No. 2 recruit Osuigwe, had the match resting in her palms. After splitting the first two sets, she rose to the occasion in a tight 7-5 final set to send the team to the ITA Indoor Championships.
Also getting it done on the lower courts to keep the Pack in the match, No. 60 senior Anna Zyryanova claimed a third-set victory 7-5 on Court 3. On Court 4, No. 38 freshman Lavinia Tanasie took down former Wolfpack member, now Gator No. 11 Gabia Paskauskas 7-5, 6-3 ,6-1, winning the first and third sets. On Court 6, junior Jasmine Conway took down Lucie Pawlak 6-4, 6-2, making quick work of the Gator.
Putting itself in position to need a comeback, the Pack dropped the doubles point as its bottom two pairings both fell 6-3. Slama and Tanasie fell first to Florida’s Valery Gynina and Brooke Black, and the No. 40-ranked pairing of Conway and Zyryanova lost to Florida’s India Houghton and Emily Seibold.
The ITA National Team Indoor Championships are not on the same level as the NCAA Championships, but success there is indicative of a strong team. Two of the last three NCAA national champions also won the ITA Indoor, with Georgia and North Carolina accomplishing that feat in 2025 and 2023 respectively.
Before the Pack heads to Chicago for the ITA event, it will face No. 3 North Carolina at the Cary Tennis Park in Cary, NC, on Friday, Jan 30. First service is set for 6 p.m.
