'Unicorn' Alanis Hamilton pivotal in UNC women's tennis' win over Gardner-Webb

First to finish, Alanis Hamilton looked on as her teammates battled to clinch the doubles point. 

A few minutes earlier, the first-year and her partner, junior Reese Brantmeier, dominated Gardner-Webb's No. 2 doubles team, 6-0. The opposition couldn’t craft a response to Brantmeier’s strong hits, unable to harness enough power to clear the net.

And when they did manage a return, Hamilton rushed to the edge of the net to deliver a dynamic strike. The final kill. 

She smiled as she walked off court two at Brantmeier’s side. Courts one and three were still in play while the duo shared a few laughs on the bench.

“She's a unicorn with her doubles,” assistant head coach Tyler Thomson said. “I would say I haven't seen a freshman doubles player like her in my whole career.”

This “unicorn” arrived Chapel Hill just a few weeks ago. During the fall season — a period where Tar Heels compete individually in singles and doubles competitions before the team season in the spring — Hamilton was playing at the U.S. Open Juniors. Despite missing time with the team, she trained constantly. She worked on her strength to prepare to compete at the collegiate level. 

After picking up her first collegiate singles and doubles victories last weekend against James Madison, Hamilton claimed another doubles win and singles sweep, 6-0, 6-3, in No. 6 UNC's dominating 7-0 victory over Gardner-Webb on Saturday.

"I just felt more comfortable in my skin," Hamilton said. "I played pretty decent today, so I think that also always helps.”

Four games into Hamilton’s second set of singles on Sunday, her opponent’s name displayed zeroes across the board on court two. Hamilton had won 10 consecutive set points, and looked to control the remainder of the match.

But the streak ended at ten. Hamilton gave up two games in a row. Now, it was 4-2. 

Instead of panicking, she used her skillful aim to sneak in two deep balls, just out of reach. She claimed a 5-2 lead on an ace — plus a stare down. 

“My opponent did a really good job adjusting and trying to change what she was doing, so I had to adjust off of that as well,” Hamilton said. “But I think at the end of the day, I was able to execute pretty well.”

After a hard-fought loss in the seventh game, she closed out the set with a slick cross court strike to the left corner to win, 6-3. Hamilton pumped her fist.

“I'm a really aggressive player, and I really love to be at the net,” Hamilton said. “And I think at times, depending on who I'm playing, some people won't give me as much pace and I have to generate more on my own. But I feel like as long as I keep it under control and have that discipline, then I'm able to build my points better.” 

After initially committing to Duke, the No. 10 recruit in the class of 2025 flipped her commitment to UNC in hopes of playing professional tennis. 

She described UNC as “the perfect balance” between high-level academics and the thrilling tennis experience she was looking for, with the coaching staff and team culture being an added bonus.

“I knew that when I watched the practice, everyone wanted to be here,” Hamilton said. “Everyone was excited to practice. It wasn't dreading, like, ‘oh, I have to go to practice’, everyone loved it, and that's, at the end of the day, the culture that I want to be in and associated with.”

The feeling was mutual. Thomson recognized her as a “world-class” doubles player and noted her potential to become one of the best doubles players in the world. She plays at the net like a pro. Her powerful serve is an added weapon. 

She's a reliable option to North Carolina's "work in progress" lineup, after the graduation of six veteran players. 

"I wouldn't put a ceiling on what she can do," Thomson said. "There's a lot of things that she'd need to improve on to be elite in the world, but she definitely has the foundation for that. And for singles, she undoubtedly can be one of the top players in the country. How soon that'll happen remains to be seen."

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