With another show of dominance in the postseason, No. 8 NC State solidified itself as a Super Regional host in a 4-0 Round 2 rout of No. 20 UCF after a three hour rain delay.
The Wolfpack (24-7) was en route to win all but one of the available seven points in a college tennis match, with the clinching points coming from Courts 4-6. After a non-competitive doubles point, it seemed only a matter of time before the match would conclude with NC State victorious. The UCF Knights (21-5) have shown to be solid over the course of the season with eight ranked wins, but they were no match for the Wolfpack coming off of a thrilling ACC Championship run.
“We played a good doubles point,” head coach Simon Earnshaw said. “We know we have that, right? We were in some ways, after waiting three hours to play yesterday and three hours to play today, the girls are almost relieved to be on court. We told them that this team had a good record, and obviously, we’ve seen them before. Even though from a ranking standpoint, they’re pretty similar to last year, this team’s a little bit walking wounded at the end of the season, so if we can get after them, then we can probably push him around, especially on our own courts, and we were able to do that.”
The two teams were rematching from last year’s Raleigh Regional where NC State won 4-1. Only three players remained from last year’s starting lineup, and the newer faces were the ones that got the job done. Namely, freshmen Victoria Osuigwe and No. 66 Lavinia Tanasie, and junior Jasmine Conway, who has really blossomed as of late.
“[We’ve had] some solid practices, and staying together as a team,” Conway said. “The coaches have stressed just simply putting effort into everything … [The ACC Championship] made us even more determined for NCAAs, and we have a great opportunity ahead.”
Osuigwe was the first to win her singles match, taking Court 5 6-1, 6-0. Soon, Conway finished up with a 6-3, 6-1 victory on Court 6. Then, Tanasie clinched the match on Court 4, 6-3, 6-0, to send the Pack to the next round.
With the match seemingly already won, the level on Courts 1-3 was not as high.
“I think we could have done better on a couple of courts as well, whether it’s scoreboard watching or keeping a better attitude,” Earnshaw said. “I know, it’s difficult because you feel like there’s a level of inevitability on some courts.”
No. 26 sophomore Mia Slama won the first set but fell behind in the second on Court 1, with her match going unfinished 6-2, 1-3. No. 46 senior Anna Zyryanova ended her match at 6-3, 4-1. No. 49 junior Gabriella Broadfoot was the lone Wolfpack player on pace for a loss, but her match went unfinished 4-6, 2-5.
Attendance could’ve been stronger for the Pack’s second round match, but expect it to significantly improve for Round 3.
“We had a double header in baseball yesterday, we had a baseball game again today, and the Canes have a playoff game tonight, right?,” Earnshaw said. “So it’s, it’s extremely important that we have as many people here as possible.”
Luckily, there won’t be much competition in town as the Pack9 plays at Stanford and the Canes have a night off on Friday.
“I expect it’ll be Texas, which is a big name brand, and it’s gonna be an amazing match for us to have here,” Earnshaw said. “This will be our last home game on campus of the season … hopefully, it can be a good event and can be a good send-off to Athens.”
The Pack will need every spot in its lineup next week as it hosts an NCAA Super Regional on Friday, May 8 at 5 p.m. at J.W. Isenhour Tennis Center, against either No. 9 Texas or No. 28 Texas Tech. The winner moves on to the quarterfinals in Athens, Georgia Thursday, May 14.
