UNC men's tennis takes control against Georgia Tech, winning 7-0

The No. 16 North Carolina men’s tennis team (13-6, 8-2 ACC) squared off against Georgia Tech (8-9, 2-5 ACC) at Chapel Hill Tennis Club today, as the Tar Heels won 7-0.

What happened?

The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets traveled into Chapel Hill looking to improve their record to above .500. 

In senior weekend, the Tar Heels got off to a hot start in doubles. In doubles match 1, fifth-ranked senior’s Brian Cernoch and Mac Kiger started off strong and never looked back winning 6-0 against the seventh-ranked doubles pair in the country. 

In doubles match 3, North Carolina’s senior Benjamin Sigouin and sophomore Peter Murphy defeated Georgia Tech’s Keshav Chopra and Chen Dong 6-2. 

North Carolina took doubles, and went up 1-0 in the match. 

In singles, in match 6, sophomore Peter Murphy dominated singles play against Brandon McKinney 6-0, 6-1. 

UNC went up 2-0 in the match. 

Match 3 featured Kiger against Chopra. Kiger was dominant from start to finish, winning 6-3, 7-5. With Kiger’s victory the Tar Heels went up 3-0 in the match. 

The match that lived up to the hype was UNC’s twenty eighth ranked Brian Cernoch taking on Georgia Tech’s thirtieth ranked redshirt sophomore Andres Martin in match 1. Martin took set one, 6-4 and Cernoch took set two, 6-2. In the third set, Cernoch won 6-4. 

This match gave the Tar Heels their fourth point on the day going up 4-0 against the Yellow Jackets. 

The Tar Heels finished strong. Logan Zapp defeated Chen Dong, Benjamin Sigouin defeated Marcus McDaniel, and Anuj Watane defeated Pablo Schlecher. 

Who stood out? 

UNC’s Cernoch and Kiger were perfect in doubles play, not taking a beat off. In a match that featured two top-10 double pairs a 6-0 victory by the Tar Heels was spectacular. This set the mood for the rest of the day for UNC. 

In singles, Georgia Tech’s Martin’s skill set was on full display after getting annihilated in doubles play. He went down to the wire against Cernoch but ultimately lost in an epic battle.  

When was it decided?

This match came down to the wire, even though North Carolina looked dominant on paper. The Yellow Jackets would not quit after going down 2-0 in the match. In match 3, Kiger defeated Chopra 6-3, 7-5. This gave the Tar Heels a 3-0 lead in the match. 

Why does it matter?

North Carolina came into the match as one of the hottest teams in ACC play. Winners of four straight matches, the Tar Heels looked to climb in the ACC standings. The sixteenth-ranked Tar Heels have only two matches left before the ACC Championships on April 21. 

As for Georgia Tech, the team was looking for its first win on the road. Besides Wake Forest coming up for the Yellow Jackets, their schedule includes the bottom half of ACC teams.  

This win gives UNC five straight wins on the season. As one of the hottest teams in the country, the Tar Heels look to knock off the Demon Deacons next week. A win in Winston-Salem would give the Tar Heels huge momentum for the ACC Championships.  

When do they play next?

The Tar Heels return to action on April 15, against Wake Forest in Winston-Salem at 3 p.m.

@RileyKennedy25

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