North Carolina
Virginia
Carolina Falls To Virginia In ACC Semifinals
April 25, 2015 | Men's Tennis
DURHAM, N.C. – The fourth-seeded North Carolina men's tennis team saw its run in the 2015 ACC Men's Tennis Championships come to an end on Saturday, falling to top-seeded Virginia 4-0 at Duke's Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center in the semifinal round. With the loss, the Tar Heels drop to 21-10 on the season, while the Cavaliers improve to 22-3.
A hotly contested doubles session was completed outdoors at Cary Tennis Park before rain forced the match to move indoors to Duke University at the beginning of singles competition.
The Tar Heels, ranked No. 16 nationally, jumped out to a 2-1 lead on all three doubles courts, but the fifth-ranked Cavaliers ultimately took the point using wins on courts one and two. At the No. 1 spot, Carolina's duo of Esben Hess-Olesen and Brayden Schnur fell to the nation's second-ranked pair of Luca Corinteli and Ryan Shane, 8-5. Virginia clinched the point on court two, where Mac Styslinger and Thai-Son Kwiatkowski, ranked No. 63 nationally, pulled away from UNC's 39th-ranked duo of junior Brett Clark and freshman Robert Kelly to tally a win by the same score. UNC's sophomore tandem of Jack Murray and Ronnie Schneider led the Cavaliers' Collin Altamirano and Mitchell Frank 7-6 when Virginia clinched the point.
In singles play, a few matches got through the first game before ACC officials suspended the contest at 11:15 a.m. due to rain. The match resumed at Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center in Durham two hours later at 1:15 p.m. Rain-related complications continued, however, after two leaks in the facility's roof delayed singles action on courts one and three. On court one, Virginia's seventh-ranked Ryan Shane held a 6-1, 5-1 lead over UNC's 12th-ranked Brayden Schnur, and on court two the Cavaliers' 93rd-ranked Collin Altamirano had a set point against No. 68 Brett Clark at 5-4 when play was halted.
Action continued on other courts, as Virginia earned a 2-0 lead after Carolina junior Stuart DePaolo fell to J.C. Aragone 6-3, 6-3 at the No. 6 spot. Shane eventually finished off Schnur 6-1, 6-1 once the leak on court one was resolved, and No. 21 Mitchell Frank secured the overall victory for Virginia by overcoming a tough effort from No. 23 Ronnie Schneider on court two, 7-5, 6-3.
Murray and Kelly also gave solid efforts for the Tar Heels on courts four and five, respectively. Both were tied in third sets when Frank recorded his match-clinching win.
Despite coming up short, the Tar Heels still put together another solid showing at the ACC Tournament. UNC has won at least one match in every ACC Tournament dating back to 2010, including runs the past two seasons that included at least an appearance in the semifinals.
Carolina will get some much-needed time to rest and regroup after a slate of four matches in six days. The team will now await its seeding in the NCAA Tournament. The NCAA Selection Show is set for 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday and can be streamed online.
#5 Virginia 4, #16 North Carolina 0
Singles competition
1. #7 Ryan Shane (VA) def. #12 Brayden Schnur (NC) 6-1, 6-1
2. #21 Mitchell Frank (VA) def. #23 Ronnie Schneider (NC) 7-5, 6-3
3. #93 Collin Altamirano (VA) vs. #68 Brett Clark (NC) 6-4, 1-1, unfinished
4. #18 Thai-Son Kwiatkowski (VA) vs. #117 Jack Murray (NC) 6-2, 4-6, 3-3, unfinished
5. Alexander Ritschard (VA) vs. Robert Kelly (NC) 4-6, 6-3, 2-2, unfinished
6. J.C. Aragone (VA) def. Stuart DePaolo (NC) 6-3, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. #2 Luca Corinteli/Ryan Shane (VA) def. Esben Hess-Olesen/Brayden Schnur (NC) 8-5
2. #63 Mac Styslinger/Thai-Son Kwiatkowski (VA) def. #39 Brett Clark/Robert Kelly (NC) 8-5
3. Collin Altamirano/Mitchell Frank (VA) vs. Jack Murray/Ronnie Schneider (NC) 6-7, unfinished
Match Notes:
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (6,1,2)
Players Mentioned
