CARY, N.C. — Just 15 minutes away from campus at Cary Tennis Park, No. 5 NC State women’s tennis cruised past No. 25 Florida State in the quarterfinals of the ACC Championships.
While the Seminoles (16-10, 7-6 ACC) put up a fight, it was largely smooth sailing for the Pack (21-4, 10-3 ACC) in its first match of the tournament, especially in singles. The Wolfpack is on a mission to make its mark in the ACC Championships — something the team hasn’t done in years past — and its 4-0 win against Florida State was a crucial first step towards that goal.
“It was a great match for the team,” said junior Gina Dittmann. “Obviously, Florida State played well, they were fighting on every court. There were tough conditions as well — it’s hot, it’s windy and I mean, our team did great.”
With the sun beating down, the two squads got to work in doubles. Both squads went blow-for-blow early on, but NC State managed to pull away on courts two and three to simultaneously secure the point. No. 8 fifth-year senior Nell Miller and junior Amelia Rajecki got the first 6-3 win, but seconds later juniors Sophie Abrams and Abigail Rencheli finished their own match 6-3 to end the round.
The Wolfpack kept its level in singles, winning the three matches it needed to clinch the win. Initially, NC State got quick first-set wins on a majority of courts, but the match seemed to stall at the back half of the round. Nevertheless, the red-and-white powered through and rolled the Noles in singles, only losing one set all day long.
“It didn’t feel like we were out there for about two hours and 10 minutes,” Earnshaw said. “It got a little warm, got a little slow, which is normal. Really just a matter of just grinding it out a bit in that last 45 minutes or so.”
First to strike was No. 12 freshman Diana Shnaider, who dominated her match 6-0, 6-3 on court one for her fourth straight-sets win against a ranked opponent in a row. Fans unsurprisingly flocked to see the No. 88 player in the world, and weren’t disappointed by her performance in the slightest.
Next, Rencheli won on court four via a 6-2, 6-3 decision, putting NC State into clinch position. The final nail in the coffin was Dittmann’s 6-3, 6-2 win on court six — one that she didn’t realize was the match-clincher until the very end.
“My opponent, she was good, it was a close match,” Dittmann said. “I actually didn’t even know that I was about to clinch, I was just focused on my match so it kind of turned out nicely.”
While this win was a simple one, the remaining matches on the Pack’s road to an ACC Championship victory get much more difficult from here on out. Additionally, NC State will face an unexpected opponent in its semifinal match. While the Pack’s match waged on, No. 20 Georgia Tech pulled off a thrilling upset over No. 6 Duke, setting up a showdown between the Wolfpack and the Yellow Jackets on Saturday, April 22.
“At this point, we don’t really care [who we play], we’ll take whatever team in the semifinals,” Earnshaw said. “…Generally we’ve not been able to give our best effort this time of the year, but I think we feel good and excited for another match tomorrow.”
NC State’s next match of the ACC Championships is set for 10 a.m. at Cary Tennis Park, where the Pack looks to beat Georgia Tech for the second time this season.
