No. 2 Michigan delivered a dose of deja vu after once again defeating No. 5 NC State women’s tennis 4-1 after doing the same a few weeks ago at the ITA Indoor Championship semifinals in Seattle. 

The Wolfpack (8-2) had nearly two weeks to prepare for a rematch with the Wolverines. However, Michigan (10-3) doubled down on its previous win with another dominant performance, this time in Ann Arbor, Michigan. 

While NC State dropped the early doubles point in the ITA bout, the Wolfpack took an early 1-0 lead in the rematch. Despite the strong start, the Pack gave up four straight singles matches to the Wolverines in a quiet finish for the Pack. 

To start, the red-and-white defeated the maize-and-blue in the doubles round with succinct, back-to-back wins on courts two and three. No. 9 sophomore Anna Zyryanova and senior Sophie Abrams took court two 6-2 while freshman Gabriella Broadfoot and senior Abigail Rencheli won 6-3. 

Play was abandoned between Michigan’s ranked pair on court one and No. 13 senior Amelia Rajecki and freshman Maddy Zampardo after NC State’s dominant round. 

However, Michigan quickly got a grip in singles. The Wolverines seemed to be one step ahead of NC State on nearly every court, beating the Pack in straight sets on courts five and six for a 2-1 lead and sitting two more down in three sets for the 4-1 win. 

First, Zampardo fell in two quick sets on court five. The freshman lost 6-0, 6-2 while senior Gina Dittmann also lost in straight sets. Dittmann’s 6-3, 6-3 loss on court six to her ranked opponent put NC State in a 2-1 hole in desperate need of a spark from its players on courts one through four. 

But after losing multiple first sets on those courts, the red-and-white’s hopes for a revenge-fueled upset dwindled with each passing point. Michigan’s next point came from court three where No. 27 Zyryanova fell in three sets to the Wolverines’ No. 46 Gala Mesochoritou. 

Zyryanova’s 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 loss put the maize-and-blue in clinch position at 3-1. With both No. 3 Rajecki and No. 30 Rencheli battling in their respective third sets, the Wolverines finished off the victory with a three-set win on court four over No. 44 Abrams. Michigan’s No. 107 Jaedan Brown pulled off the upset with a match-winning 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory. 

After getting sat down by the Wolverines for the second match in a row, NC State will turn its attention to Oklahoma. NC State is set to play the Sooners in Norman, Oklahoma on Sunday, Feb. 25. First serve is set for noon.