After coming up short in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Indoor Team Championship finals against California, the No. 2 North Carolina’s women’s tennis team turned to No. 8 Michigan for a chance to rebound and regain speed.
The Tar Heels faced off against the Wolverines on Saturday in Ann Arbor, Mich. But the top-10 matchup proved to be a challenge for UNC, as it lost 5-2.
The mistakes started early for the Tar Heels in the doubles matches.
Junior Hayley Carter and senior Whitney Kay were defeated in their doubles match, 6-4, followed by senior Ashley Dai and first-year Chloe Ouellet-Pizer losing, 7-6 (7-4). The Tar Heels dropped the doubles point for the first time this season.
UNC needed to rebound in singles in order to give itself a chance of squeaking out a win against Michigan. Kay and Carter proved their leadership, giving the team some fire early in the singles matches.
Kay started off strong with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Brienne Minor, tying the score at 1. But sophomore Marika Akkerman suffered a 6-3, 6-4 defeat against Alex Najarian, giving the lead back to Michigan.
Carter, who ranked No. 3 in the country in singles, showed her dominance and tied up the match again at 2 with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Ronit Yurovsky.
Even with the leadership of Kay and Carter, the Tar Heels could not fight off the Wolverines, as North Carolina dropped the final three matches.
Ouellet-Pizer lost to Sara Remynse, 6-4, 6-4; first-year Jessie Aney lost to Kate Fahey, 6-4, 6-4; and senior Kate Vialle lost to Mira Ruder-Hook, 6-2, 4-6, 6-0.
