University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
ITA Individual Indoors
Schnur Punches Ticket To Finals At National Indoors
November 8, 2014 | Men's Tennis
FLUSHING MEADOW, N.Y. – North Carolina sophomore Brayden Schnur reserved his spot in the finals of the USTA/ITA National Indoor Collegiate Championships after picking up a straight-sets victory in his semifinal match at the USTA Billie Jean National King Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y. on Saturday.
Schnur, ranked No. 7 nationally in the ITA preseason poll, defeated Tulane's No. 98 Dominik Koepfer 6-4, 7-6(4) to move on to the finals. Koepfer held a 3-0 lead at one point in the second set, but Schnur countered by rattling off five straight games. After a back-and-forth exchange of games, Schnur finally sealed the match on his serve in the second-set tiebreaker.
“It feels good to be moving on,” said Schnur. “I'm more relieved than anything. These past few days have been physically demanding, but I'm glad I get to play another day.”
The Pickering, Ontario native will move on to face Vanderbilt's No. 9 Gonzales Austin in the final on Sunday. The left-handed Commodore senior led Virginia's No. 28 Ryan Shane 7-5, 3-3 in the other semifinal match before Shane retired. Austin earned ITA All-America honors in singles and doubles last season.
“Brayden has been working hard,” said North Carolina head coach Sam Paul. “We are looking forward to tomorrow.”
Be sure to follow @carolinatennis on Twitter for updates during Sunday's final, which is set for 10 a.m.
Schnur's Path to the Finals
Round of 32
d. #8 Winston Lin (Columbia), 6-4, 6-7(5), 7-5
Round of 16
d. #14 Amerigo Contini (VT), 6-3, 6-3
Quarterfinals
d. #80 Thai-Son Kwiatkowski (UVA), 6-4, 7-6(0)
Semifinals
d. #98 Dominik Koepfer (Tulane), 6-4, 7-6(4)
Players Mentioned
