Carolina Falls To TCU In Elite Eight

Saturday, May 16

Waco, Texas

11:00 AM

North Carolina

TCU

May 16, 2015 | Men's Tennis

By: UNC Athletic Communications

WACO, Texas – The No. 13 North Carolina men's tennis team saw its run in the NCAA Tournament end on Saturday, falling 4-1 to No. 5 TCU in the quarterfinals at Hurd Tennis Center on the campus of Baylor University. With the loss, the Tar Heels finish the season 24-11, while TCU moves on to the Final Four with a mark of 25-7.

UNC narrowly surrendered the doubles point after matches on courts two and three went to tiebreakers. The Horned Frogs got on the board first on court one, though, where their 30th-ranked pair of Cameron Norrie and Trevor Johnson defeated Esben Hess-Olesen and Brayden Schnur 8-6.

Needing to win tiebreakers on the remaining two courts, the Tar Heels did manage to take the match on court three thanks to a gritty effort from sophomores Jack Murray and Ronnie Schneider. The duo ousted Guillermo Nunez and Hudson Blake 8-7(5). On court two, Carolina's 45th-ranked pair of junior Brett Clark and freshman Robert Kelly rallied in the tiebreaker to take a 6-5 lead on the strength of Kelly's serve, but Nick Chappell and Facundo Lugones earned the final three points to claim the doubles point for TCU.

In singles both teams took three first sets, but the Horned Frogs went on to claim three straight-set singles wins to secure a spot in the Final Four.

Lugones led the way for TCU, besting Murray 6-3, 6-1 on court four. Schneider, ranked 28th nationally, earned UNC its only team point on court two by fighting off 59th-ranked Guillermo Nunez, 7-6(5), 6-1. Nick Chappell, ranked No. 49, responded for TCU with a 6-4, 6-2 defeat of UNC's 11th-ranked Schnur. TCU's clincher came soon after on court five, where Arnau Dachs rallied in the second set to top Kelly 6-4, 7-5.

“I think one thing that hurt us today was shot selection,” said UNC head coach Sam Paul. “TCU, to their credit, played great defense…I don't think we played poorly today. TCU just outplayed us at a couple spots. The doubles could have gone either way, and I think that could have changed the momentum of the match.”

Saturday's loss concludes what was otherwise a terrific spring campaign for the Tar Heels. The team earned the third Elite Eight appearance in program history and tallied more than 20 wins, the sixth team since 2000 to hit the 20-win plateau.

The loss also brings an end to the collegiate careers of seniors Esben Hess-Olesen, Oystein Steiro and Andrew Gores. Steiro missed the final month of the season due to a foot injury. Hess-Olesen was 46-34 in singles on his career and 53-37 in doubles. Steiro concludes his time in Chapel Hill with a singles mark of 75-55 and a doubles mark of 67-44.

Up next, Ronnie Schneider and Brayden Schnur will represent the Tar Heels in the NCAA Singles Championships, which begin on Wednesday also at Baylor University. Both were at-large bids, and Schnur is seeded No. 9-16 among the total field of 64.

#13 TCU 4, #5 North Carolina 1

Doubles competition

1. #30 Cameron Norrie/Trevor Johnson (TCU) def. Esben Hess-Olesen/Brayden Schnur (UNC) 8-6

2. Nick Chappell/Facundo Lugones (TCU) def. #45 Brett Clark/Robert Kelly (UNC) 8-7(6)

3. Jack Murray/Ronnie Schneider (UNC) def. Guillermo Nuñez/Hudson Blake (TCU) 8-7(5)

Singles competition

1. #49 Nick Chappell (TCU) def. #11 Brayden Schnur (UNC) 6-4, 6-2

2. #28 Ronnie Schneider (UNC) def. #59 Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) 7-6(5), 6-1

3. #39 Cameron Norrie (TCU) vs. #73 Brett Clark (UNC) 3-6, 7-6(6), 1-0, DNF

4. Facundo Lugones (TCU) def. Jack Murray (UNC) 6-3, 6-1

5. Arnau Dachs (TCU) def. Robert Kelly (UNC) 6-4, 7-5

6. Will Stein (TCU) vs. Esben Hess-Olesen (UNC) 3-6, 6-5, DNF