The No. 21 NC State men’s tennis team took down the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in a 4-1 clinch match as the squad returned home after playing seven out of its last nine matches on the road.
The Pack earned an important ACC win as the team defeated the Yellow Jackets with strong performances all around. Winning the doubles, as well as taking victory in crucial singles matches, moved the Pack to 15-7 overall and to 4-5 in conference play.
“We’ve had such a tough schedule this year, I don’t think that’s ever happened to us,” said junior Robin Catry. “Now, we finally get to play in front of our fans. It pleased everyone and it pleases us also because we’ve played in some tough places.”
Catry was the one to clinch the match for the Pack in his three-set bout on court three late in the match. After dropping his first set, the junior stormed back in the next two sets to conclude the Pack’s 4-1 victory. Catry took court three with a final score of 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
“Clinching a match at home is always a great feeling,” said Catry. “It’s so special, you get all the guys watching, you’re playing your last match on and it feels so great to give them all that relief. And it’s a really good win, especially for us.”
The Pack started on the right foot after winning a tightly contested doubles round. Sophomore Braden Shick and redshirt senior Joseph Schrader earned a flawless 6-0 win to begin the match. However, the second doubles match was not as easy to come by. With both remaining courts going to extra games, it was graduate student Collin Shick and sophomore Luca Staeheli that put the Pack up 1-0 with their 7-5 win.
To start the singles round, the Yellow Jackets were able to tie the match with a Georgia Tech victory on court one over junior Martins Rocens in straight sets. However, NC State would take the next three straight singles matches to win the day, 4-1.
The first to strike for the Pack in singles was freshman Damien Salvestre, who won court four in a strong 6-4, 6-1 win. After a break in scoring, Salvestre was followed by Braden Shick on court six as Braden Shick made it 3-1 for NC State. After dominating in his first set, the sophomore was challenged for possession of the second, but eventually won it via tiebreak with a final score of 6-1, 7-6 (8-6).
Up 3-1, Catry was able to finish the day for the Pack with his clinching victory on court four. Going forward, the Pack will repeat its performance from today in the remaining matches, all against conference opponents. However, after returning to play in Raleigh today, the Pack will play out the rest of its schedule at home.
“Coming home was great, having that feeling, regardless of the conditions,” said head coach Kyle Spencer. “Having our fans be able to watch us play, not on a live stream but in person. Credit to Wolfpack nation for coming out, we got a pretty big crowd out there today.”
While the next couple weeks include three challenging ACC matchups, including the Pack’s rivalry weekend against Duke and UNC, starting on April 15, the Wolfpack’s lineup is gearing up to face whoever comes next head on.
“They come every day to practice, they love playing tennis, they want more tennis, they love to compete, and now we’ll be on our home courts for Sunday and then whatever else is after, you know we’re pretty excited,” Spencer said.
Next for NC State is a match against the Clemson Tigers on Sunday, April 10. First serve is set for 12 p.m.
