Down 6-3 in the tie-breaker set, North Carolina women’s tennis team senior Gina Suarez-Malaguti knew she and doubles partner Zoe De Bruycker could rally with powerful serves and trust in each other’s game.
That was because they had done exactly the same thing a week earlier in their match against Auburn.
And as they did last weekend, Suarez-Malaguti and De Bruycker clinched the doubles point for UNC, this time with three straight points en route to a thrilling 10-8 victory in the tie-break set.
The pair took the match 8-7, propelling the No. 8 Tar Heels to a convincing 5-2 victory against the No. 16 Michigan Wolverines Sunday at the Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center.
Caroline Price, Whitney Kay, Ashley Dai and Suarez-Malaguti all won their singles matches.
Tessa Lyons and Lauren McHale won their doubles match, but Kay and Dai dropped their match to put the fate of the doubles point squarely in the hands of the senior duo.
“I didn’t doubt for a second that we were going to be able to come back and win,” Suarez-Malaguti said. “Especially having Zoe by my side as a teammate, I trust her a lot. Having so much confidence in your partner gives you so much confidence to bring your A-game.”
Suarez-Malaguti said that her trust in the pair’s game gave her the confidence to go for the powerful serves that have become a staple of her game — not an easy task for a player that underwent shoulder surgery in the offseason.
“To be able to serve well means you have to have somebody that really trusts you,” Suarez-Malaguti said. “Knowing that Zoe had my back and trusts me, I was able to trust the work I’ve put in that I don’t have to shy away and hit vanilla shots.”
