North Carolina
Northwestern
No. 18 Northwestern Tops No. 3 UNC, 4-2
February 26, 2011 | Women's Tennis
Feb. 26, 2011
EVANSTON, Ill. --- Just seven days after the two teams met in the ITA National Team Indoor Championships, No. 3 North Carolina dropped its rematch with No. 18 Northwestern, 4-2, Saturday at the Combe Tennis Center. Carolina lost the doubles point in both meetings with the Wildcats, but the Tar Heels were unable to mount the same rally that saw them come out on top in Charlottesville. Jelena Durisic and Haley Hemm were singles winners for UNC, which fell to 7-3 on the dual season.
Northwestern (6-5) got the first victory of the day in doubles, with No. 15 Linda Abu Mushrefova and Nida Hamilton outlasting No. 6 Shinann Featherston and Lauren McHale at the top of the lineup, 8-6. Gina Suarez-Malaguti and Zoe De Bruycker then pulled UNC even, as the sophomore duo topped Kate Turvy and Belinda Niu, 8-6, at No. 3.
That left court two to decide the point, and Northwestern's Maria Mosolova and Elena Chernyakova ran out to an early 7-4 lead on Durisic and Tessa Lyons. But the Tar Heel pair battled back to win the next four games to move in front, 8-7. NU forced a tiebreak, however, and clinched the point for the hosts with a 9-8 (4) win.
Both teams made changes to their singles lineups from the previous meeting, and in the early going Northwestern had the upper hand. No. 98 Turvy gave the Wildcats a 2-0 lead with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Suarez-Malaguti at No. 2. No. 100 Niu then made it 3-0 with a 7-6 (5), 6-2 victory over No. 75 Featherston on court three.
UNC got back in the dual with a pair of wins at the bottom of the lineup from Durisic and Hemm. No. 119 Durisic rebounded from a first-set tiebreak loss to defeat Abu Mushrefova, 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-1, at No. 5. Hemm then pulled Carolina with one point, topping Chernyakova, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2, at No. 6.
Ultimately, though, Northwestern held on to its lead to finish out the victory. In a rematch from last week at No. 4, the Wildcats' Stacey Lee dropped the opening set to No. 93 McHale before winning the final two sets and the match, 1-6, 6-4, 6-3.
At No. 1 singles, No. 13 De Bruycker was leading No. 29 Mosolova in a three-setter, 1-6, 6-2, 3-2, when the match was halted.
Carolina will return home for a non-conference doubleheader on March 3 as the Tar Heels host UNC Greensboro at 2 p.m. and Memphis at 7 p.m. at the Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center.
No. 18 Northwestern 4, No. 3 North Carolina 2
Doubles
1. #15 Abu Mushrefova/Hamilton (NU) def. #6 Featherston/McHale (UNC), 8-6
2. Mosolova/Chernyakova (NU) def. Lyons/Durisic (UNC), 9-8 (4)
3. Suarez-Malaguti/De Bruycker (UNC) def. Turvy/Niu (NU), 8-6
Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2*
Singles
1. #13 Zoe De Bruycker (UNC) vs. #29 Maria Mosolova (NU), 1-6, 6-2, 3-2
2. #98 Kate Turvy (NU) def. Gina Suarez-Malaguti (UNC), 6-3, 6-1
3. #100 Belinda Niu (NU) def. #75 Shinann Featherston (UNC), 7-6 (5), 6-2
4. Stacey Lee (NU) def. #93 Lauren McHale (UNC), 1-6, 6-4, 6-3
5. #119 Jelena Durisic (UNC) def. Linda Abu Mushrefova (NU), 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-1
6. Haley Hemm (UNC) def. Elena Chernyakova (NU), 6-4, 4-6, 6-2
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 5, 6, 4*
Players Mentioned
