The N.C. State women’s tennis team shut out visiting Maryland, 7-0, Sunday afternoon at the Dail Outdoor Tennis Stadium. The Pack won each individual match on the day and refused to drop a set in singles competition. With the win, the Wolfpack improved to 13-6 and 4-5 in ACC play, while the Terrapins dropped to 5-14 with a 0-9 mark in conference.
On Saturday, the Pack defeated Boston College, 5-2, in its first match of the weekend. It was the first time this season that the Wolfpack has won both matches in a weekend in conference play.
“The team worked really hard this week, and we played a great match yesterday,” head coach Hans Olsen said. “We improved going into today.”
State took control early by sweeping the three matches to win the doubles point. The No. 1 team of junior Joelle Kissell and senior Tatiana Illova defeated Maryland’s Vroni Van Berlo and Sarah Gealer 8-4. At No. 2, State sophomores Elisha Hande and Nicole Martinez topped sisters Olga and Nataliya Bredikhina, also by a score of 8-4, to seal the doubles point for the Pack. Senior Chloe Smith and sophomore Sophie Nelson closed doubles play by downing Maryland’s Olga Gaistruk and Gabriela Srodowski 8-5.
“Everyone’s been working so hard, I was so proud of everybody,” Kissell said. “Coming off a road loss, we wanted to do a little better. Coming out and just fighting for every point.”
The Wolfpack continued its strong showing in singles play, led by Illova at No. 2, who finished her match first. The No. 112-ranked player in the country defeated Gealer 6-4, 6-2, to double the lead to 2-0 for State. The 50th-ranked Kissell was right behind her at No. 1 on the next court over, topping Van Berlo 6-4, 6-3.
“For me personally, I was just focusing on playing every point, not giving her any loose points,” Kissell said. “Running down everything and playing the way I want to play.”
State clinched the match thanks to Smith, who eased past Nataliya Bredikhina at No. 3 by a score of 6-2, 6-2. But the Wolfpack was not finished, as freshman Rachael James-Baker dispatched Gaistruk at the No. 4 spot. No. 6 Martinez was next off the court, beating Srodowski 7-5, 7-5, in the closest match of the day. Hande rounded out the results for the Pack, defeating Olga Bredikhina 6-3, 7-5, despite being down a break in the second set. Hande had a chance to win in the tenth game of the match, slipping up on a series of match points before recovering to break back and serve out the match.
“I thought that Maryland competed well,” Olsen said. “They have a young team and they’re developing their players. I thought they did a good job.”
Before the match, former Wolfpack coach Kelly Key-Gaines was honored on the court. Key-Gaines coached the team from 1990-95 and is now the executive director of the USTA’s North Carolina division. In between singles and doubles play, several of Key-Gaines’ former players were honored as well.
The Wolfpack will conclude regular season play with a two-match homestand next weekend. The first match is Saturday, April 20 against Clemson, while Georgia Tech comes to town the following day. Sunday’s match will serve as Senior Day before the ACC Tournament the following weekend.
