No. 8 NC State women’s tennis notched the 13th win of its 2023 campaign in a 5-2 win over Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana on Friday, March 24.
While not in the top-25, the No. 27 Fighting Irish (11-7, 1-5 ACC) aren’t to be trifled with, and they proved that against the Wolfpack (13-2, 5-1 ACC) by winning two singles matches. In the end, though, Notre Dame was no match for the red-and-white, who won the doubles point and four singles matches to win comfortably.
The Pack got off to a red-hot start in the doubles round, using its formidable lineup to easily claim the early point. On court two, the No. 19 pair of junior Amelia Rajecki and fifth-year senior Nell Miller crushed their opponents 6-0 while the No. 10 pair of freshman Diana Shnaider and graduate student Alana Smith nearly did the same on court one as they routed their opposition 6-1.
With the Pack’s early 1-0 lead, Notre Dame put up more of a fight in singles, but NC State still found success all the same. First, junior Sophie Abrams won in two sets on court four, 6-4, 6-4 to double the Pack’s lead, and one result later, No. 19 Shnaider tripled it with her 7-6 (7-4), 6-1 decision on court one.
Down 3-0, Notre Dame finally started to live up to its namesake and fight back, starting with the Irish’s two-set victory over No. 9 Smith on court two. However, with junior Gina Dittman’s three-set win on court six, NC State clinched the win at 4-1. To get there, Dittman lost her first set 6-3 but stormed back in her second and third sets to earn a final decision of 3-6, 6-0, 6-4.
With the win wrapped up, Rajecki added to the lead with her own three-set comeback win on court two. Like Dittman, she fell in her first set but found success in the next two, eventually beating her opponent 3-6, 7-5, 6-3.
Notre Dame got one more on the Pack in the final match, a three-set win over Miller. However, it was too little, too late for the Fighting Irish, whose struggles in ACC play continue.
Meanwhile, NC State is flourishing in conference play and will look to build off of its 5-1 ACC record against Louisville in the final leg of its five-match road trip.
The Wolfpack’s showdown with the Cardinals is set for Sunday, March 26 at noon.
