North Carolina
No Carolina St
Men's Tennis Upsets N.C. State, 4-3
June 21, 1999 | Men's Tennis
April 15, 1999
RALEIGH, N.C. - The 74th-ranked North Carolina mens tennis team rallied Wednesday afternoon to upset 48th-ranked N.C. State 4-3 at the Wolfpack Tennis Center in Raleigh, ending a four-match Atlantic Coast Conference losing streak for the Tar Heels.
Victories at the #3-#6 singles spots in the lineup lifted to Tar Heels to a come-from-behind victory over the Wolfpack that improved the Tar Heels to 11-12 overall this year and 3-4 in the ACC. N.C. State, which had scored back-to-back wins over #42 Wake Forest and #25 Virginia in its previous two matches, fell to 12-9 overall and 3-4 in the ACC.
State jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the match by claiming the doubles point, winning two of three matches. All three doubles matches were decided by 8-6 scores. The two teams split the top four singles matches with 63rd-ranked Roberto Bracone of N.C. State winning at #1 singles over UNCs Michael Grass and Carolina's David Cheatwood losing a tough three-set match to Eric Jackson at #2 singles.
Carolina juniors Assaf Drori and Aron Breziner won in straight sets at #3 and #4 singles to pull the Tar Heels back into the match. Sophomore Chad Riley tied the match for the Tar Heels at 3-3 by beating States Devang Desai at #6 by a 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 score. UNC freshman Bjorn Rencken then clinched the match for the Heels by coming from behind at #5 singles to whip the Wolfpacks Shaun Thomas, 4-6, 6-4, 7-5.
Carolina will conclude its regular season on Friday when it plays host to 3rd-ranked Duke at the Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center at 3 p.m.
#74 NORTH CAROLINA 4, #48 N.C. STATE 3
Site: Wolfpack Tennis Complex, Raleigh, N.C.
Date: April 14, 1999
SINGLES
1. #63 Roberto Bracone (NCSU) d. Michael Grass (UNC), 6-2, 6-2
2. Eric Jackson (NCSU) d. David Cheatwood (UNC), 7-6, 0-6, 6-3
3. Assaf Drori (UNC) d. Keith Salmon (NCSU), 6-1, 6-3
4. Aron Breziner (UNC) d. Jeff Smith (NCSU), 6-3, 6-4
5. Bjorn Rencken (UNC) d. Shaun Thomas (NCSU), 4-6, 6-4, 7-5
6. Chad Riley (UNC) d. Devang Desai (NCSU), 6-4, 4-6, 6-4
DOUBLES
(Played Before Singles, Best 2 of 3 Matches Win 1 pt. toward final score)
1. Michael Grass/Ben Elix (UNC) d. Eric Jackson/Devanh Desai (NCSU), 8-6
2. Roberto Bracone/Shaun Thomas (NCSU) d. Assaf Drori/Remi Adamek (UNC), 8-6
3. Deval Desai/Keith Salmon (NCSU) d. David Cheatwood/Bjorn Rencken (UNC), 8-6
RECORDS: North Carolina, 11-12 overall, 3-4 in the ACC; N.C. State 12-9 overall, 3-4 in the ACC
Players Mentioned
