The women’s tennis team fell to No. 17 Florida State, 4-0 in the opening round of the ACC Championships Thursday afternoon at the Cary Tennis Park. N.C. State finished the season 4-18 overall.
“Our girls have just gotten stronger and stronger mentally,” coach Hans Olsen said. “Especially in the last three weeks. I think for them to accomplish that with a lot of challenges in front of them has been really good.”
The Pack lost to the Seminoles 1-6 in the regular season April 5 in Tallahassee, Fla. Despite that lass, Olsen said the team played better this time around.
“The girls improved tremendously,” Olsen said. “They were really fighting from start to finish. I was very much pleased with the improvement, starting with the doubles.”
Doubles consisted of freshman Diana Mortlock and junior Berkley Brock, on the number two court, defeating Florida State 8-3. At number three doubles, freshman Pender Sessoms and senior Neils Barringer lost 8-3. The doubles point came down to junior Daria Petrovic and sophomore Lenka Hojckova, who fell losing the point to the Seminoles 8-5.
“We came out in the doubles fighting really hard,” Barringer said. “We were really aggressive, but Florida State just came out with the right shots at the right time.”
On the singles court, Sessoms lost quickly to Jessica Sucupira 6-0, 6-0, playing number six. On court number four, Barringer lost to Ania Rynarzewska 6-4, 6-2 in her final match for the Wolfpack.
“I was just excited today,” Barringer said. “On senior day I cried, but since then I’ve just enjoyed every match. It’s just been such a great experience and I wish the girls luck next year.”
No. 94 Hojckova, playing number one, started off strong against No. 58 Katie Rybakova, winning the first set 6-2, but later fell 6-1, 6-0, securing the Seminoles victory.
Petrovic, who didn’t get a chance to finish her match, remained confident, despite the loss.
“It’s always important to finish strong, and that’s what we did,” Petrovic said. “We all had a good mentality — nobody gave up.”
Reflecting back on the season, Olsen said he is proud of all of the team’s accomplishments regardless of its record.
“The girls have really focused on the things they have control over,” Olsen said. “I’m really proud of them for that. We’ve had some really good results too. Berkley [Brock, ranked 118] and Lenka [Hojckova, ranked 94] are both ranked nationally in singles and doubles as well. A year ago they were both unranked players, and to still be ranked at the end of the year, it shows a full year of improvement.”
The team has much to gain from this tournament and this season, however its not quite time for next season’s plans, according to Olsen.
“We are going to take a lot from today and a lot from this year and build on it,” Olsen said. “Yet, you can’t look to far ahead– you have to take it one day at a time. You need to get the most you can out of this year, this team, and these players. They are young so they have a lot to learn.”
