The crowd rose to its feet as Alle Sanford won point after point on Court Two.
The first-year played with increasing confidence with every rally, winning the first set 6-3, then storming back after being down 4-5 in the second set to win 7-5. Her victory clinched the match for the No. 1 North Carolina women's tennis team, in its dominant 7-0 win against Virginia on Friday.
“I think the crowd really really helped Alle,” head coach Brian Kalbas said. “I could really tell they were into it. Maybe it was the ice cream. I don’t know what was going on.”
The free Ben and Jerry’s ice cream certainly could have had an effect, as the Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center's bleachers were almost completely full of students. Whatever the case, the team certainly took notice, riding the momentum to its fifth straight ACC win.
It started when the Tar Heels (21-2, 10-1 ACC) won the doubles point with decisive matches on Courts One and Three, winning 6-2 and 6-4, respectively, leaving Court Two unfinished at 5-5.
It didn’t take long for junior Chloe Ouellet-Pizer and sophomore Alexa Graham to put another two points on the scoreboard with wins in singles, making it 3-0. Ouellet-Pizer won on Court Six, 6-2, 6-1, while Graham won 6-1, 6-1, on Court Three.
“Chloe and Alexa were really instrumental," Kalbas said. "When you win the doubles point, you want to keep that momentum going, and to get two quick points on the board was huge for us.”
With the Tar Heels taking a commanding lead, all eyes turned to Court Two, where Virginia’s Cassie Mercer tried to prevent No. 25 Sanford from deciding the match for North Carolina.
“It was super fun to have the crowd into it,” Sanford said. “I’ve never really played a match where they were that into it. Definitely one to remember.”
