After a one-game hiatus, NC State men’s tennis got back to its winning ways against Notre Dame on Friday, March 24 by sweeping the Fighting Irish 4-0 in Raleigh.
The Wolfpack (11-5, 5-0 ACC) cruised by Notre Dame (10-9, 1-5 ACC) in the fair-weathered outdoor match, claiming its fifth-straight ACC win. NC State also got right back to building another win streak after No. 3 Texas ended the red-and-white’s previous six-match streak. Even after the loss, the Wolfpack clearly didn’t skip a beat and used its versatile and dangerous lineup to down Notre Dame without issue.
NC State quickly earned a 1-0 lead after the doubles round thanks to a commanding performance. First, redshirt sophomore Braden Shick and sophomore Fons Van Sambeek blanked their opponents 6-0 on court three, and the No. 40 duo of fifth-year senior Rafa Izquierdo Luque and sophomore Joseph Wayand won 6-2, putting a bow on a ruthless doubles round.
“I’m super happy with my performance and the guys’ performance as well,” said junior Luca Staeheli. “I think we did pretty well, and we always have a good start in the doubles, so that helps for sure.”
Staeheli had an impressive performance in the singles round indeed, evident from his 7-6, 6-1 victory on court two. After battling tooth-and-nail for his first set, Staeheli found his footing in the second and cruised to the Pack’s second singles win of the day.
Before that, though, Shick had doubled NC State’s lead in rapid time with his 6-3, 6-2 win on court three. After Shick’s second dominating win of the day and Staeheli’s two-setter, the red-and-white’s victory was all but guaranteed, especially with senior Robin Catry in his groove on court four.
Catry’s match-clinching win came shortly after Staeheli’s victory on the adjacent court. Even after splitting his first two sets, Catry locked in for the third set and ultimately beat his opponent 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.
With the match clinched at 4-0, play stopped on all remaining courts, including Izquierdo Luque’s and Wayand’s, who were both deep into their respective matches.
It’s safe to say that the Pack’s loss to the Longhorns — a good loss if there is such a thing — didn’t deter NC State from playing the best tennis it has all season long, or from its aspiring and ambitious mindset.
“Every next match we play, we feel like it’s like a championship-style match,” said head coach Kyle Spencer. “I’m proud of the guys and I’m proud of their effort today and of guys getting off the court — Braden and Luca [winning] in straight sets really, really helped us. We’re going to need another strong performance on Sunday.”
This Sunday, March 26 will see not just one, but two opponents take on the Wolfpack in Raleigh as Louisville and North Carolina A&T come to town in a doubleheader at noon and 5 p.m., respectively.
