For the first time in more than a month, the No. 18 Virginia women's tennis team swept its weekend competition as the squad decidedly plowed through N.C. State and Wake Forest during its final home matches of the season. The victories ended the Cavaliers' two-game losing skid and bumped the squad up one spot in the conference standings.
"We really took care of business," sophomore Erin Vierra said. "That means a lot heading into the last couple matches of the season, ACCs and hopefully postseason play."
Although its matchup against N.C. State (11-7, 2-6 ACC) was delayed and moved indoors because of inclement weather, Virginia (16-6, 5-4 ACC) came out firing on all cylinders during the doubles portion of the contest. The No. 28 pairing of junior Emily Fraser and sophomore Hana Tomljanovic secured an 8-4 win on the No. 2 court before junior Lindsey Hardenbergh and Vierra teamed up to clinch the doubles point with a 9-7 comeback win.
The No. 56 tandem of Hardenbergh and Vierra fell to an early deficit against the No. 26 duo of senior Sanaa Bhambri and junior Sandhya Nagaraj before aggressive net play and a few favorable calls from the chair umpire propelled the Virginia team to victory.
On two occasions during the middle of the match, the chair umpire issued calls that aggravated the N.C. State pair and incited the fury of Wolfpack coach Hans Olsen, who flew from his seat on the sideline to argue the official's rulings. Olsen's efforts to overturn the original calls ultimately failed, however, and Hardenbergh and Vierra took full advantage of their foes' frustrations.
"We had actually played that pair before in the fall, and they had beaten us pretty badly," Vierra said. "There [was] a little bit of the feeling of wanting to get a little revenge ... Once I told myself that I wasn't going to miss and I was going to make them play every ball, that helped."
The Cavaliers' confidence appeared to carry into singles play as the team downed the Wolfpack in three of the four matches that reached completion. Sophomore Maria Fuccillo delivered the first Virginia victory with a dominating 6-0, 6-1 win on the No. 6 court to give the Cavaliers an early 2-0 advantage.
No. 99 Vierra added the third point shortly thereafter with a straight-set win against freshman Joelle Kissell at the No. 4 position before No. 54 Hardenbergh assured a Virginia victory with a 6-1, 6-4 performance on the No. 1 court.
Coach Mark Guilbeau, while pleased with his team's overall performance, was especially thrilled to see such solid outings by Vierra and Fuccillo - two players who have struggled during the last few weeks. Entering the match, Vierra had fallen during four of her last six matches. Fuccillo, meanwhile, recently had squandered an early lead during a third set tiebreak that would have propelled the Cavaliers to a surprising upset against then-No. 3 North Carolina April 2.
"We certainly could use a boost from Maria and Erin really playing well and getting their share of wins, [and] they both deserve it," Guilbeau said. "I was really impressed with Erin. She did not allow the opponent to attack her ... and Maria absolutely stepped up and played a great match. When she attacks like that, she's as good as anyone."
Vierra and Fuccillo continued their dominant play Saturday against the last-place Demon Deacons (6-12, 0-9 ACC) with two more personal triumphs. Fuccillo collected the Cavaliers' third point of the afternoon with a 7-5, 6-1 win at No. 6 singles while Vierra closed out the match with a 10-7 third set success.
Hardenbergh, meanwhile, notched her ninth-consecutive victory as she cruised past sophomore Kathryn Talbert on the No. 2 court. No. 53 Fraser also recorded 7-6 (5), 6-0 upset triumph against No. 24 junior Martina Pavelec at the top position. Pavelec had defeated Fraser during the two programs' first meeting this past January.
"It's good to see the players feeling good," Guilbeau said. "To be honest, sometimes they handle the ups and downs better than the coaching staff and sometimes the coaching staff handles it better than the players. But we're all a group working together, and it's good to win and it's good see a few changes that help you win."
Guilbeau hopes the Cavaliers can continue their winning formula when the squad concludes its regular season slate with back-to-back matches against No. 11 Clemson and No. 12 Georgia Tech this weekend. The results of both matchups will determine the Cavaliers' seeding during the ACC Tournament, which is scheduled to begin April 21.
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