Blumberg Claims ITA Singles Crown

Thursday, October 5

Tulsa, Okla.

All Day

North Carolina

ITA All-American Championships – Main Draw

UNC sophomore William Blumberg won the singles draw at the ITA All-America

Sophomore William Blumberg won the ITA All-American Singles Championship.

October 9, 2017 | Men's Tennis

By: UNC Athletic Communications

TULSA, Okla. – UNC sophomore William Blumberg on Monday became the first North Carolina player to win the ITA Men's All-American Championship, defeating UCLA's Martin Redlicki, 6-4, 6-4. Blumberg's bid to become just the fifth player to win singles and doubles titles in the same year fell just short as he and senior Robert Kelly finished as runners-up, falling in a tiebreaker in Monday's final.

"It's great company to be in – that's a tough tournament to win," UNC coach Sam Paul said. "Will has done a lot of work off the court, put in a lot of training and preparation, and he saw it pay off this weekend.

"And it's a tremendous accomplishment for Robert and Will to make the finals in doubles. I'm happy for both of those guys."

The Tar Heels fell in the doubles final to a team from Florida, 7-6(6), 3-6, 10-7.

By reaching the finals, Blumberg and Kelly earned spots in the 2017 Oracle ITA National Fall Championships Nov. 1-5. Kelly, who also reached the All-American doubles finals as a sophomore, said he and Blumberg are looking for a strong showing at that event.

"It was cool to be here," Kelly said. "I got to bring the energy as Will was making his incredible singles run.

"We played some good tennis out here and hopefully we'll finish the fall with a good showing in California."

For a look at the full doubles draw, click here.

Blumberg, seeded third in the field, beat the No. 1 seed, Ohio State's Mikael Torpegaard, in the semifinal on Sunday to make the championship. For a look at the full singles draw, click here.

"I've been training hard on and off the court so to get this win means a lot to me," Blumberg said. "My body felt great and I held up well. I've been working really hard and it's good to see it pay off. "