In a Monday afternoon dual at the Chewning Tennis Center, No. 14 Virginia fell 6-1 to No. 3 North Carolina, marking their first loss of the spring dual season. The Cavaliers (3-1, 0-1 ACC) entered the match seeking redemption after last season’s ACC Tournament elimination at the hands of the Tar Heels (4-0, 1-0 ACC), but ultimately came up short across the board. Facing one of the nation’s best lineups — which fielded five ranked singles players and two ranked doubles pairings — the Cavaliers battled through an exciting doubles phase and several long singles matches.
At Court 2 doubles, senior Annabelle Xu and sophomore Martina Genis Salas struggled against a Tar Heel duo that finished last season ranked No. 2 nationally in senior Reese Brantmeier and sophomore Alanis Hamilton, losing 6-3. Virginia’s top pairing of junior Vivian Yang and fifth-year Melodie Collard picked up a strong ranked win, taking out the third ranked doubles pairing in the country 6-3, evening the doubles. At Court 5, however, senior Meggie Navarro and sophomore Isabelle Lacy had an entertaining match, but their UNC opponents broke a 5-5 deadlock to claim the doubles point.
Singles began with the majority of the momentum on the Tar Heels' side. At Court 1, Yang found herself in an exhausting battle as she faced the reigning NCAA singles champion in Brantmeier. Yang stayed competitive using her power and precise curving shots despite falling in the first set 6-1. Although she was defeated 6-2 in the second set, Yang stepped up to the challenge against the nation’s top-ranked player.
At Court 4, Virginia earned its lone singles point. Lacy controlled rallies through disciplined shot selection while sticking to her unique style of staying back at the baseline. Lacy won both sets 6-4 to put Virginia on the board after the dual itself was already out of reach.
Several courts featured extended battles that went to third sets after the dual concluded. Collard, who played singles against UNCG but not Richmond, stayed competitive throughout at Court 5, especially in service games. After winning her first set 6-3, Collard found herself tied at 6-6 until the Tar Heels clinched the set with a tiebreaker. Collard went on to suffer an 8-10 loss in the third set tiebreaker after a close finish.
At Court 6, freshman Kaitlyn Rolls' speed stood out in prolonged rallies. Rolls pushed her opponent — freshman Anna Frey — through and stayed competitive despite a straight-set loss of 6-3, 6-4. At Court 3, Genis Salas faced a difficult matchup against No. 35 junior Tatum Evans. The Tar Heels star secured the singles point, winning 6-4, 6-1.
At Court 2, Xu played one of the most entertaining matches of the afternoon, facing the No. 23-ranked graduate student Oby Kajuru. Xu fell in the first set 6-3, but bounced back with a dramatic 6-4 win in the second. She continued to put up a great display, but ultimately came up short in the tiebreak, losing 11-9. This closed the curtains for the afternoon’s match, Tar Heels winning the dual 6-1 overall.
Though the match is a tough loss that will likely be one discussed extensively within the team as they approach conference play, Virginia will have the chance to bounce back in the coming weeks during the indoor leg of the spring season. The Cavaliers will be hosting an ITA Kickoff Weekend tournament in Charlottesville this weekend, with USC, Wisconsin and Rice visiting to bid for qualification to February’s ITA Team Indoor Championship in Illinois. Virginia will play the Owls (2-0, 0-0 ACC) Saturday, before facing either the Trojans (4-0, 0-0 B10) or the Badgers (2-0, 0-0 B10) Sunday.
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