The No. 1 North Carolina women’s tennis team (15-0) defeated the No. 20 Virginia Cavaliers (6-3) 4-1 to open conference play on Friday in Charlottesville.
What happened?
UNC lost the doubles point for the second time this season to give the Cavaliers an early 1-0 advantage.
Virginia’s No. 41 doubles team upset the No. 4 North Carolina duo of junior Fiona Crawley and sophomore Carson Tanguilig 6-3. On court one, No. 37 senior Elizabeth Scotty and first-year Reese Brantmeier lost 3-6 to solidify UVA’s lead.
In singles, No. 56 Scotty tied up the scoreboard, defeating Virginia junior Sara Ziodato in straight sets. Adding an additional point for North Carolina, No. 23 senior Anika Yarlagadda pulled away with a 6-4, 6-0 victory. Finally, No. 1 Crawley and No. 7 Tanguilig clinched the match with their own respective singles wins.
Who stood out?
With the absence of graduate student Abbey Forbes, the Tar Heel line-up looked a little different. Stepping up to play on court five, Yarlagadda dominated the entire match-up. She continues to prove to be a valuable asset in the absence of usual starters.
Falling in the first set 3-6, Tanguilig swept UVA’s Elaine Chervinsky 6-1 to force a final third set. Winning four of the first six game points, the sophomore developed a comfortable 4-2 lead. She completed her comeback by dominating the final two games to end the set with a 6-2 win.
