University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Georgia Tech
No. 19 UNC Cruises Past No. 24 Georgia Tech 5-2
April 11, 2010 | Men's Tennis
April 11, 2010
CHAPEL HILL - The North Carolina Tar Heels battled to a 5-2 win in a pivotal ACC match against No. 24 Georgia Tech on Sunday afternoon, which was also Carolina's Senior Day.
Nineteenth-ranked UNC leapfrogged the Yellow Jackets into third place in the conference with the win, and have three ACC regular-season matches remaining.
"We made some really positive steps today, and I'm very proud of our effort," said head coach Sam Paul. "Our seniors made a big impact today in doubles, and we're glad we could get a win for them in their last home match."
The Tar Heels' two seniors being honored on Sunday, Clay Donato and Andrew Crone, both chipped in to help UNC win the team doubles point. Donato and Stefan Hardy played up to their No. 17 national ranking by defeating Tech's Kevin King and Juan Spir 8-3 at the top flight, while Crone and doubles partner Jose Hernandez followed with an 8-4 win at the third spot. Hernandez gave Carolina a 1-0 lead with an overhead winner on the fifth match point of the eight-game pro set.
UNC kept the momentum going in singles play, winning the first three matches completed to clinch the team victory. The first player off the court was Stefan Hardy, who made quick work of the Yellow Jackets' Eliot Potvin at the third singles flight in a 6-1, 6-4 victory. Brennan Boyajian followed suit with a straight-sets win of his own at the fourth spot, cruising to a 6-1 second-set win in an emotional match with Georgia Tech's Miguel Muguruza.
Hernandez finished off a day of exceptional play by scoring an upset win over No. 62 Kevin King at the second singles flight. The 6-1, 6-4 win delivered the fourth and deciding team point to the Tar Heels.
"I'm glad I played well in doubles; I wanted to give my best to help (Crone) out since he's a senior," said Hernandez. "We were really looking forward to this match since they beat us 7-0 last year; we were really hungry to win." Carolina will make the short trip to Durham on Tuesday, April 13 to face Duke at 3 p.m. The Blue Devils are ranked 20th in the nation, and defeated Clemson on Sunday to remain second in the ACC.
#19 North Carolina 5, #24 Georgia Tech 2
Records: UNC 16-4 (6-2), GT 15-5 (6-3)
Doubles
1: #17 Clay Donato and Stefan Hardy (UNC) d. Kevin King and Juan Spir (GT) 8-3
2: Eliot Potvin and Ryan Smith (GT) d. Brennan Boyajian and Cameron Ahari (UNC) 8-5
3: Andrew Crone and Jose Hernandez (UNC) d. Guillermo Gomez and Dean O'Brien (GT) 8-4
Singles
1: #4 Guillermo Gomez (GT) d. #51 Clay Donato (UNC) 6-1, 4-6, 7-6(6)
2: #78 Jose Hernandez (UNC) d. #62 Kevin King (GT) 6-1, 6-4
3: Stefan Hardy (UNC) d. Eliot Potvin (GT) 6-1, 6-4
4: #108 Brennan Boyajian (UNC) d. Miguel Muguruza (GT) 6-4, 6-1
5: Magin Ortiga (GT) d. Andrew Crone (UNC) 6-1, 6-4
6: Zach Hunter (UNC) d. Dean O'Brien (GT) 6-2, 6-4
Order of finish
Doubles: 1, 3, 2
Singles: 3, 4, 2, 5, 6, 1
Players Mentioned
