North Carolina
Tulane
Tar Heels Punch Ticket To Tulsa
May 15, 2016 | Men's Tennis
“Tulane's got a heck of a team,” UNC coach Sam Paul said. “This round is always tough – across the country this is a tough match to play. Congratulations to my team. We don't take this for granted.”
UNC improved to 27-4 overall, tying the program record for wins in a season. Tulane fell to 16-9.
Carolina opened with the doubles point, picking up wins at No. 1 (senior Brett Clark and sophomore Robert Kelly) and No. 3 (junior Ronnie Schneider and freshman Anu Kodali). “We came out fast in doubles and no one let up,” Kodali said. “In singles everyone got off to good starts and we also finished well, which is what Coach has been talking about – finishing well.”
UNC got wins in five of six first sets, the exception being No. 1, where junior Brayden Schnur, UNC's highest ranked player at No. 26, battled TU's Dominik Koepfer, who is ranked third nationally. After Koepfer's 6-4 first-set win, Schnur fought to a 6-3 victory in the second. That was where the marquee matchup stood when the team win was decided.
Kodali, playing at No. 6, was the first to wrap up his singles match, beating Tyler Schick 6-1, 6-2 in less than an hour. “Anu played well today in singles and doubles,” Paul said. “I think that's the best match he's played.”
After the lineup's only first-year player picked up his win, next it was the turn of the only senior. At No. 3, Clark ran to a 6-1 win in the first set but had to fight harder and break serve to seal the match with a 6-4 second set. After his opponent, Sebastian Rey, approached the net for a volley, Clark returned it over his head for the win. “Hitting that top-spin lob on match point was big,” Paul said. “But he's always come up big.”
The 115th singles win of Clark's career helped assure that he'll play at least one more as a Tar Heel. “It was really good to see every time I looked up at the scoreboard that the momentum was headed our way, and we kept that going,” Clark said. “I was glad I could help out as well. It was a tough match and I was glad to get the break to end it, for sure.”
Kelly then locked it up with a win at No. 5. After battling to a 9-7 tiebreaker victory in the first set against Ian Van Cott, the sophomore from Chapel Hill won the second 6-0 to give the Tar Heels their fourth point and a ticket to Tulsa.
“This is a special group – third year in the sweet 16,” Paul said. “I thought we played really well today – I was really pleased with how we played in doubles and some starts we got singles. We still could get better – we always say that. We're looking forward to the next round.
“It's been a fun year. Any time you're sitting at 20-plus wins, it's been a heck of a year. It's a very special group, but we've got more to do.”
The Tar Heels open play in Tulsa on Friday (May 20) against Mississippi State. For the complete bracket, click here: http://www.ncaa.com/interactive-bracket/tennis-men/d1
May 15, 2016
Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center, Chapel Hill, N.C.
No. 3 North Carolina 4, No. 31 Tulane 0
Doubles
Order of match finish: (3,1)
1. #3 Robert Kelly/Brett Clark (UNC) d. Dominik Koepfer/Chi-Shan Jao (TU), 6-4
2. #27 Brayden Schnur/Jack Murray (UNC) vs. Constantin Schmitz/Tyler Schick (TU), 4-3 DNF
3. Anu Kodali/Ronnie Schneider (UNC) d. Sebastian Rey/Ian Van Cott (TU), 6-2
Singles
Order of match finish: (6,3,5)
1. #26 Brayden Schnur (UNC) vs. #3 Dominik Koepfer (TU), 4-6, 6-3, DNF
2. #28 Ronnie Schneider (UNC) vs. Constantin Schmitz (TU), 7-6(2), 3-3, DNF
3. #46 Brett Clark (UNC) d. Sebastian Rey (TU), 6-1, 6-4
4. Jack Murray (UNC) vs. Chi-Shan Jao (TU), 6-3, 3-5, DNF
5. #117 Robert Kelly (UNC) d. Ian Van Cott (TU), 7-6 (7), 6-0
6. Anu Kodali (UNC) d. Tyler Schick (TU), 6-1, 6-2
Records: North Carolina 27-4, Tulane 16-9
.png&width=84&height=84&quality=100&type=webp)
Players Mentioned
