North Carolina
Michigan
No. 15 Tar Heels Outlast No. 18 Michigan, 4-3
March 18, 2012 | Women's Tennis
March 18, 2012
ANN ARBOR, Mich. --- Shinann Featherston rallied for a three-set victory to give No. 15 North Carolina a 4-3 win over No. 18 Michigan Sunday afternoon at the Varsity Tennis Center. Lauren McHale and Gina Suarez-Malaguti were also singles winners for the Tar Heels, who took the doubles point and held on for the key non-conference victory.
Haley Hemm and Tessa Lyons continued their outstanding doubles play, improving to 8-0 in the dual match season with an 8-2 triumph over Sarah Lee and Sam Crister on court three. Carolina then clinched the point on court one as Featherston and McHale defeated No. 7 Brooke Bolender and Emina Bektas. The 13th-ranked Tar Heel All-America pair upped its spring record to 8-2 and scored its third win of the season over top-10 opposition.
"(Bolender and Bektas) is possibly the most athletic doubles team in the nation, so we worked all week on countering their aggressive play," head coach Brian Kalbas said after the match. "We got a few breaks early that we couldn't consolidate, but Lauren and Shinann played two amazing games at 5-5 and 6-5. I thought they both played great today and getting the doubles point was big for us."
Singles was a tight, back-and-forth affair that saw neither side able to gain much separation.
Michigan (7-5) quickly tied the dual at 1 with Michelle Sulahian's 6-2, 6-2 win over Tessa Lyons on court six. Gina Suarez-Malaguti put the Tar Heels back in front next with her 6-4, 6-2 victory over Kristen Dodge on court five.
No. 124 Mimi Nguyen then pulled the Wolverines back even with a hard-fought 6-4, 6-4 win over No. 96 Caroline Price on court four.
That left the top three positions to decide the match, and Michigan had opening set wins on courts one and two.
The turning point in the dual may have come on court three, however, as No. 26 McHale and Michigan's Lee were locked in a second-set battle. Lee came back from 4-2 down and fought off a match point at 6-5 to force a tiebreak. McHale got out to a 6-3 lead and converted her fourth match point of the day to take the match, 6-1, 7-6 (5) and put Carolina ahead once again.
"Lauren's tiebreak was huge for us," Kalbas said. "She was undefeated this spring and was brimming with confidence going into the tiebreak. For Lauren to finish that match out in two sets made a big difference in those last two matches."
No. 10 Bektas kept Michigan alive with a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 win over No. 33 Zoe De Bruycker on court one. De Bruycker was able to even the final set at 4 after falling behind 4-2, but Bektas played two strong games to claim the victory and even the dual at 3.
Featherston proved to be up to the challenge on court two, winning the final eight games of the match to defeat No. 64 Bolender, 5-7, 6-3, 6-0.
"Shinann played amazing tennis from 4-3 in the second to the end," Kalbas said. "She did a great job of staying focused and putting pressure on her opponent and for her to win the way she did, with the match on the line at No. 2, it really shows how far she's come."
Carolina (11-4) will now turn its attention to Atlantic Coast Conference play for the rest of the regular season. The Tar Heels return home on Wednesday, March 21, to host NC State at the Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center. That match is set for a 2:30 p.m. start. In addition to Wednesday's match, the Tar Heels will hold a student and fan meet and greet event on Monday at the Cobb Courts on campus at 2 p.m. Carolina will provide balls and racquets, and the players will run doubles drills. Food and drinks will also be provided for those in attendance.
No. 15 North Carolina 4, No. 18 Michigan 3
Doubles
1. #13 Featherston/McHale (UNC) d. #7 Bolender/Bektas (U-M), 8-6
2. Nguyen/Sulahian (U-M) d. Price/Slater (UNC), 8-4
3. #53 Haley Hemm/Lyons (UNC) d. Lee/Critser (U-M), 8-2
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2
Singles
1. #10 Emina Bektas (U-M) d. #33 Zoe De Bruycker (UNC), 3-6, 6-4, 6-4
2. #118 Shinnan Featherston (UNC) d. #64 Brooke Bolender (U-M), 5-7, 6-3, 6-0
3. #26 Lauren McHale (UNC) d. Sarah Lee (U-M), 6-1, 7-6 (5)
4. #124 Mimi Nguyen (U-M) d. #96 Caroline Price (UNC), 6-4, 6-4
5. Gina Suarez-Malaguti (UNC) d. Kristen Dodge (U-M), 6-4, 6-2
6. Michelle Sulahian (U-M) d. Tessa Lyons (UNC), 6-2, 6-2
Order of finish: 6, 5, 4, 3, 1, 2
Players Mentioned
