North Carolina State University Athletics
Men's Tennis Takes No. 19 Final ITA Ranking
6/4/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
RALEIGH, N.C. - The final Fila / Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) rankings for the 2007 men's tennis season are in, and NC State is well represented in all of the year-end polls. The Wolfpack team finished at No. 19 in the country after a storybook run into the Elite Eight at the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history. The ranking marks the Pack's best-ever finish at the end of the season, as well as its highest-ever ranking.
In singles play Nick Cavaday finished at No. 94, while William Noblitt came in at No. 115. Both netters combined to place No. 17 in combo play.
Additionally, the Wolfpack finished at No. 6 in the ITA Mideast Region rankings. Cavaday landed at No. 13 in singles, while Noblitt placed at No. 20. The duo was ranked No. 5 in doubles.
Noblitt, a native of Shelby, N.C., became the first Wolfpacker to win back-to-back all-conference accolades since Eric Jackson in 2000 and 2001 by picking up All-ACC hardware in 2006 and 2007. Additionally, Noblitt is just the fourth State player to be named All-ACC more than once since 1991. Aside from Noblitt and Jackson, Sean Ferreira was named all-conference in 1991 and 1993, while Roberto Bracone picked up the honor all four seasons between 1996 and 1999.
If the league prestige wasn't enough, Noblitt also has more combined fall and spring season wins in both singles and doubles than any player in school history, posting a 95-46 slate in solo play, and an 87-54 combo mark.
Hailing from London, England, Cavaday, the Pack’s No. 1 staple in singles action, picked up his first all-league honor in doubles this year. Cavaday and Noblitt were ranked as high as No. 11 earlier in the year; the highest ever mark by a Wolfpack duo.
The Pack fell to Baylor, 4-0, in the Elite Eight on Saturday, May 19. In a season for the record books, State grabbed its most wins ever in a single year by going 23-10 and advancing to the Elite Eight for the first time in program history. In fact, the Pack entered the postseason with a 0-3 record in NCAA Tournament matches and quickly grabbed wins over No. 43 William & Mary, No. 6 North Carolina and No. 11 Texas.
The season also marks the second time that NC State has won 20 matches in a year. The last time it happened? Try one year ago, when Choboy lead State to a 20-11 slate and its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1999. Choboy is the only coach in program history to take the Pack to the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back years.
