North Carolina State University Athletics
Women's Tennis to Open ACC Play Thursday Afternoon
2/18/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Live Stats | Live Video
RALEIGH, N.C.- Holding a 5-1 record on the season, the NC State women's tennis team will open Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) play on Feb. 19 when it hosts No. 1 UNC-Chapel Hill inside J.W. Isenhour Center.
The match is slated to begin at 3 p.m.
The Wolfpack will also make its first road trip of the season as it heads to Williamsburg, Va., to face William and Mary on Feb. 21. This match is slated for a 2 p.m. start.
Simon Says
"This is a very important week for the team as we start out ACC play hosting UNC-Chapel Hill and then play our first road match. The matches this past weekend showed us areas that need improvement- we have been working hard on those areas and hopefully that will translate into immediate progress.
"North Carolina is coming off winning their second ITA Indoor team title and carries the top ranking. With that being said it's always good to gauge yourself against the best, and I expect us to raise our games and play at a high level. The game at William & Mary will also be a good challenge for us; they've made a nice start this year which makes it an excellent opportunity for us to try and move up ourselves."- Simon Earnshaw, head coach
Last Time Out
The team hosted No. 37 LSU and UNC-Wilmington in a doubleheader on Feb. 15 inside the J.W. Isenhour Center. The team fell to LSU 7-0 and defeated UNCW 6-1.
The duo of Elisha Hande and Joanna Nalborska won both of their doubles matches on the day, and each won their singles match in straight sets over their UNCW opponent. Natalia Janowicz and Tayla Stenta also won their singles matches in straight sets in the Pack's match versus the Seahawks.
Follow the Format
The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) has enacted the following new match format designed to shorten the duration of college tennis matches for the enjoyment of fans. This format will only be used in non-conference matches only, as Thursday's conference match will be played under the NCAA format.
• 3 doubles matches, each 1 set, with a tie-break at 6-all.
• 5 min intermission between doubles and singles
• 6 singles matches, each 2 out of 3 sets, with tie-breaks at 6-all.
• No-ad scoring in singles and doubles (if game reaches deuce, next point wins)
• No warm-up with opponents in doubles or in singles
Live Streaming
Thursday's match will feature an online video stream of each court inside the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Center. This marks the debut season of live streaming for Pack women's tennis, as all of the team's home matches will be streamed online.
Scouting UNC-Chapel Hill
The Tar Heels will enter Thursday's match holding the top spot in the ITA National Team Rankings.
Six of the squads players rank among the top 125 of the ITA National Singles Rankings, and three doubles teams are listed among the top 25 of the ITA National Doubles Rankings.
In its last time out, UNC-CH won the ITA National Indoor Championship title- its second in three years. On its road to victory, the team defeated No. 16 Oklahoma State, No. 12 Miami, No. 2 Florida and No. 9 Georgia.
Scouting William and Mary
The No. 62 Tribe will enter Saturday's match against the Pack with a 5-2 record. William and Mary recently suffered a 5-2 loss to No. 24 Ole Miss on Feb. 15, and its match at Memphis on Feb. 16 was postponed due to inclement weather.
