In No. 1 UNC women's tennis 6-1 win over BC, Brian Kalbas notches 700th career coaching win

The No. 1 North Carolina women's tennis team (17-0, 6-0 ACC) closed out the weekend with a 6-1 victory over Boston College (5-5, 2-3 ACC), giving head coach Brian Kalbas his 700th career victory as a women’s tennis coach. 

What happened?

The Tar Heels were back at the Chapel Hill Tennis Club for a second time this weekend to play unranked Boston College. 

UNC started down a break point early on court one doubles, and the other two courts also had tight scores. The Tar Heels on court one were able to equalize the score shortly after, with No. 9 senior Cameron Morra powering past Boston College with several aggressive forehands. 

After building a rhythm midway through the set, the Tar Heels on court one never looked back and comfortably won their match with a 6-3 score. North Carolina was also running away from Boston College on the scoreboards of courts two and three. 

The doubles point was taken by North Carolina, with court two winning 6-1. What may seem like a straightforward win for the Tar Heels was more complicated than what is on the scoreboard, though, with the Eagles putting up a fight. 

A powerful sidewind picked up when the singles matches began, but that did not seem to affect the Tar Heels. They took the positive energy gained in the doubles matches to propel themselves forwards in the singles. 

Courts one, two, four and five developed comfortable leads, with No. 24 first-year Carson Tanguilig delivering the first singles win with an impressive 6-1, 6-0 score on court five. Courts two, one and four followed to put the scoreboard at 5-0.

The last court to finish was court six, who split sets. Boston College took the last point of the afternoon, completing UNC’s almost-perfect win over the Eagles.  

Who stood out? 

Morra, who plays on court one for both doubles and singles, played some spectacular tennis today. By running around the backhand, she was able to put her powerful two-handed forehand to use. 

On court two doubles and singles, No. 15 junior Elizabeth Scotty also had strong performances. When she went to the net, she put away multiple volleys in both doubles and singles.

No. 10 sophomore Reilly Tran, meanwhile, had to dig deep for her singles victory today on court three. Tran put forth tremendous efforts in long baseline rallies, showing that her defense is just as strong as her offense. She won after her opponent retired midway through the second set. 

When was it decided?

North Carolina was ahead on the scoreboard the entire match, something that has been a recurring theme this season. After the steady start to the singles matches, UNC shut down most opportunities for the Eagles to come back. 

Regardless of the team playing, it will always feel like a countercurrent swim when facing the undefeated Tar Heels, who have once again begun a season undefeated.

Why does it matter?

Today was no routine victory for North Carolina, as it marked Kalbas’ 700th career win. He joins an exclusive club of four other Division I women’s tennis coaches to reach 700 victories. The two-time ITA National Coach of the Year achieved his 700 wins in 30 years as a collegiate head coach, 19 of those spent in Chapel Hill.

North Carolina still boasts undefeated a 17-0 record this season, and the Tar Heels will go into next week maintaining their No. 1 ranking. 

The triumph over Boston College also marks the end of a busy weekend for the Tar Heels and launches the team into next week’s complicated schedule. The team has away matches against the University of Miami and Florida State scheduled for next week.

When do they play next?

The team will be traveling to the Coral Gables outdoor tennis facility to face an Atlantic Coast Conference opponent in No. 10 Miami on Friday, March 25 at 5 p.m.
 

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