North Carolina
Illinois
No. 8 Illinois Edges No. 6 UNC 4-3 In Thriller
February 1, 2015 | Men's Tennis
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – In a match determined by the slimmest of margins, eighth-ranked Illinois (4-1) outlasted No. 6 North Carolina (6-1) by a score of 4-3 on Saturday at Atkins Tennis Center. The thrilling match came down to court one – a duel between Illinois' Farris Gosea and Carolina's No. 2 Brayden Schnur– with the team points knotted up at 3-3. Gosea ultimately edged Schnur 3-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(5) to hand Carolina its first loss of the spring campaign.
The Tar Heels were able to grab an early lead thanks to superb play in doubles. On court three, Carolina's pair of junior Brett Clark and freshman Robert Kelly was able to cruise to a 6-1 victory over Aron Hiltzik and Aleks Vukic. The Illini countered on court two, though, as Gosea and Jared Hiltzik defeated Schnur and sophomore Jack Murray by an equally convincing 6-1 score.
Despite dealing with a revamped doubles lineup, Carolina's senior duo of Esben Hess-Olesen and Oystein Steiro sealed the doubles point with a 6-4 victory over Ross Guignon and Tim Kopinski on court one. Steiro, who has put together a solid spring campaign to this point, served out the match.
In singles, Kelly notched the fifth dual-match victory of his career with a 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 triumph over the Illini's 44th-ranked Vukic. Facing a 2-0 deficit, the Illini battled back behind the 40th-ranked Kopinski on court three and Toshiki Matsuya on court six. Kopinski registered a 7-6(5), 6-2 defeat of Murray, while Matsuya snuck past junior Stuart DePaolo 6-2, 4-6, 6-2.
Hess-Olesen responded for UNC by overwhelming No. 62 Aron Hiltzik 6-1, 4-6, 6-3, giving Carolina a 3-2 lead. Illinois' No. 31 Jared Hiltzik then delivered a match-saving 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 victory over Clark, setting up Gosea for the winner-take-all third-set tiebreaker.
Tar Heel sophomore Ronnie Schneider, ranked 27th nationally, did not play due to injury.
Carolina will get an opportunity to bounce back on Wednesday when it faces Campbell and North Carolina Central in a doubleheader at Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center. The matches are slated to begin at 2:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., respectively.
#8 Illinois 4, #6 North Carolina 3
Singles
1. Farris Gosea (ILL) def. #2 Brayden Schnur (UNC), 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-5)
2. #31 Jared Hiltzik (ILL) def. Brett Clark (UNC), 5-7, 6-4, 6-4
3. Esben Hess-Olesen (UNC) def. #62 Aron Hiltzik (ILL) 6-1, 4-6, 6-3
4. #40 Tim Kopinski (ILL) def. Jack Murray (UNC), 7-6 (7-5), 6-2
5. Robert Kelly (UNC) def. #44 Aleks Vukic (ILL), 6-4, 1-6, 6-3
6. Toshiki Matsuya (ILL) def. Stuart DePaolo (UNC), 6-2, 4-6, 5-2
Doubles
1. Oystein Steiro/Esben Hess-Olesen (UNC) def. Ross Guignon/Tim Kopinski (ILL) 6-4
2. Farris Gosea/Jared Hiltzik (ILL) def. Jack Murray/Brayden Schnur (UNC) 6-1
3. Brett Clark/Robert Kelly (UNC) def. Aron Hiltzik/Aleks Vukic (ILL) 6-1
Match Notes:
North Carolina 6-1; National ranking #6 I
llinois 4-1; National ranking #8
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (5,4,6,3,2,1)
Players Mentioned
