The No. 35 N.C. State men’s tennis team opened up its season with two crushing victories against UNC-Greensboro and North Carolina Central at the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Center this weekend to begin its 2014 season. The Wolfpack didn’t surrender a set in either match, getting off to a 2-0 start on the season.
Saturday was the Wolfpack’s first look at the new ITA experimental scoring format. Under this new format, both singles and doubles matches are played in six-game sets, with tiebreakers in the event of a 5-5 tie. This new format didn’t deter the pack, as it won both matchups very convincingly, 7-0.
N.C. State’s first victory of the day came against UNC-Greensboro. Juniors Austin Powell and Beck Bond started the day strong for the Wolfpack in the doubles competition at the No. 3 spot. The duo outplayed UNC-G’s Nazhone Wilkins and Jimmy Roueche, grabbing an early break to win 6-2.
From there, the Pack never slowed down.
At the No.2 spot, junior Robbie Mudge and freshman Ian Dempster defeated UNC-G’s Daniel Mack and Ahmet Sarioglu. The combo won easily, downing their opponent 6-2, clinching the doubles point for the Wolfpack.
Senior Sean Weber and freshman Nick Horton kept the Pack rolling with a hard-fought victory over UNC-G’s James Dougherty and Randy Phillips. The duo, ranked 19th in the country, certainly proved why they are deserving of a national ranking, winning a close match by a score of 6-5.
The Wolfpack outplayed the Spartans in the singles matchups, pulling off several decisive wins.
At the No. 3 position, Mudge defeated Phillips in straight sets, winning 6-3 6-1. Powell also won in straight sets against Dougherty at the No. 2 spot, winning 6-2, 6-5.
Horton sealed the win in his collegiate dual-match debut as he outplayed Mack at the No.4 spot, winning by a score of 6-2, 6-2. At the No.1 spot, sophomore Thomas Weigel defeated UNC-G’s Ahmet Sarioglu in two competitive sets, winning both 6-4 and 6-5.
Weber and Bond finished the sweep for the Wolfpack. Weber knocked off Gaston Murray at No. 5 by a score of 6-3, 6-3, while Bond defeated Cameron Smith 6-2, 6-1.
The Pack continued its strong play against Central. At the No.3 doubles spot, Powell and Bond knocked off Fabrice George and Thomas Persico of the Eagles 6-2 in the first doubles match. The duo kept the momentum going from their early matchups with UNC-G to easily secure the victory.
The two earlier doubles matches were not close. At the No. 2 spot, Mudge and Dempster crushed Central’s S. Charles-Donatien and Tamina Kienka 6-0, while at the No. 1 spot, Weber and freshman Nick Horton continued the sweep, defeating N.C. Central’s Daniil Gerasimov and William East 6-0.
In the singles matches, the Wolfpack didn’t let off the gas. The squad racked up six straight victories in straight sets against N.C. Central.
At the No. 4 spot, Horton continued his great debut, defeating East 6-2, 6-0. Powell followed him off the court as he grabbed a win against Kienka 6-1, 6-3 at the No. 3 spot.
No. 2 Mudge knocked off Charles-Donatien 6-1 in both matches, and Weigel defeated N.C. Central’s Gerasimov at No. 1 by a score of 6-2, 6-1. No 5. Bond and No. 6 Weber each scored straight-set victories, completing the sweep for the Pack.
The 35th ranked N.C. State men’s tennis team will look to build off of this momentum as it heads to Knoxville to compete in the 2014 ITA Kick-Off Weekend. Also competing in the event are hosts Tennessee, Virginia Commonwealth and Michigan State. The Pack will play against VCU on Saturday to open the event.
