No. 3 NC State women’s tennis sweeps Clemson in second round of ACC Championship

Ethan Bakogiannis, Assistant Sports Editor • April 21, 2022

Sophomore Abigail Rencheli yells as she celebrates a point during the match against Notre Dame on Saturday, April 16, 2022 at Dail Outdoor Tennis Stadium. Rencheli won her singles match 2-0. The Wolfpack won 7-0.

The No. 3 NC State women’s tennis team started its ACC Championship run off strong with a flawless 4-0 win over the Clemson Tigers in the second round of the tournament on Thursday, April 21.

The Pack extended its excellent regular season play to the first match of the postseason in order to sweep the Tigers. With a pair of dominant doubles wins and three quick straight set singles victories, NC State easily earned the right to play in the quarterfinal round against the Virginia Cavaliers.

To start the match, NC State took a 1-0 lead after showing its usual doubles prowess. Sophomore Sophie Abrams and freshman Priska Nugroho swept their Tiger opponents 6-0, followed by the Pack’s regular No. 26 sophomore duo of Amelia Rajecki and Abigail Rencheli, who won court two 6-2.

Up 1-0, it didn’t take long for NC State to add to its total as the Pack’s first two singles wins came from the top two players in its lineup. First to strike was No. 40 Rencheli, who engineered a dominating 6-2, 6-1 win on court two over a ranked opponent.

Putting NC State in clinch position was No. 12 graduate student Jaeda Daniel, who won 6-4, 6-1 on court one. While Daniel and Rencheli cruised past their opponents, Clemson still contested multiple other courts in the match.

Despite the Tigers’ refusal to relent, Rajecki decidedly ended the match with her win on court five. Like Rencheli and Daniel, Rajecki put on an impressive performance, winning 6-3, 6-3 in straight sets to clinch the match.

Play was stopped on all other courts due to the Pack’s swift 4-0 clinch. Abrams, senior Nell Miller and No. 66 Nugroho’s matches were all left unfinished as the three were battling in their respective second sets.

After almost effortlessly taking down Clemson, NC State will have a much more challenging opponent waiting for the squad in the quarterfinal round. Virginia beat NC State late in the regular season in a close 4-3 match, meaning the Pack will be on the hunt for revenge against the Cavaliers in the highly-anticipated rematch between the ACC heavyweights.

NC State and Virginia are set to square off on Friday, April 22 at 3:30 p.m. in the quarterfinal round of the ACC Championship in Rome, Georgia.