The N.C. State men’s tennis team (14-7 overall, 3-5 ACC) pulled off a 4-3 upset over the No. 12 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (14-8, 4-4) on Sunday afternoon at Dail Outdoor Tennis Stadium.
Doubles play began with an 8-3 win for the Wolfpack’s No. 1 team of freshman Ian Dempster and junior Robbie Mudge, ranked No. 50 in the nation. The pair put on an overpowering performance against Notre Dame’s senior Greg Andrews and sophomore Alex Lawson, who were ranked No. 7 in the nation.
State’s No. 2 team of senior Sean Weber and freshman Nick Horton, ranked No. 36 nationally, lost to freshman Josh Hagar and senior Billy Pecor. Despite strong play from both Weber and Horton the duo were edged in an 8-6 tiebreaker.
The Pack’s No. 3 team, consisting of junior Austin Powell and sophomore Simon Norenius, clinched the doubles point in an 8-4 tiebreaker against freshman Eddy Covalschi and sophomore Quentin Monaghan. The doubles point win was a key factor that contributed to the N.C. State victory on Sunday.
In singles, No. 6 Horton was first to come off the court, achieving a 6-4, 6-4 victory over sophomore Eric Schnurrenberger.
However, Notre Dame quickly answered, as No. 5 Covalschi, playing angry after his doubles loss, beat Weber 6-1, 6-4 and gave the Fighting Irish their first point for the day.
The next player off the court for N.C. State was No. 4 Norenius, who put up a fight against Hagar and came out with the win, 6-4, 7-5.
The Pack’s No. 3 sophomore Thomas Weigel was next to finish. Weigel lost both sets 6-4, 6-4 to Notre Dame senior Ryan Bandy.
With a score of 3-2, the two Wolfpack singles players remaining were locked in battle, as both matches went into three sets.
No. 1 Powell, ranked No. 47 in the nation, faced off against Andrews, ranked No. 29 nationally. The pair went toe-to-toe and matched each other’s every effort. The match continually shifted momentum as Andrews won the first set 6-4. Powell rebounded and beat out his opponent in the second, 6-3.
Andrews was not willing to lose the match. The Fighting Irish senior drilled the ball wherever he wanted to in the third set and overwhelmed Powell, winning the third set 6-2 and tying the meet 3-3.
“They’re good at competing, and they don’t go away,” Pack head coach Jon Choboy said. “We just battled. We matched their competing with our competing.”
Members of both teams lined up to surround the court to watch and support their teammates in the showdown between Mudge and Monaghan; a win by either team would result in the overall victory of the meet.
Though Mudge won the first set 6-4, Monoghan echoed Mudge’s effort and took the second set 6-4. The match points won throughout the day winded down to the final set.
“A lot was going on in my head,” Mudge said. “When you start thinking about the whole match or everybody in the stands, that’s when the match can slip away but I wasn’t going to let that happen today.”
Mudge grabbed an early lead of 5-2 in the set, but Monaghan countered in desperation and won two games in a row. Despite Monaghan’s momentum shift, Mudge remained calm following and concentrated on hitting accurate shots to the corners that gassed his opponent. Mudge took the final game, and led his to its second win over a top-15 opponent this season.
“Rob Munch came up huge for us today,” Choboy said. “He did exactly what he had to do: he stepped up and took points. It’s the only way you’re going win that match.”
The Wolfpack looks to accomplish another upset, as the team will travel to Charlottesville, Va. Friday to take on the No. 4 Virginia Cavaliers.
