Syracuse’s ACC Tournament Run Ends with a Loss to North Carolina
Friday, Apr 19, 2019 at 9:07 pm by
Sports Editor
By Brad Klein
CitrusTV Tennis Reporter
DURHAM, N.C. – North Carolina was too much for Syracuse to handle during the regular season, beating the Orange 5-2. Friday’s ACC Quarterfinals dual was not an exact replay of that win a month ago, but the No. 2 Tar Heels still put up a performance worthy of its ranking.
Top-seeded North Carolina (28-1, 14-0) swept ninth-seeded Syracuse (14-13, 6-10) 4-0.
North Carolina set the tone in double with a stifling 6-1 win over Gabriela Knutson and Miranda Ramirez. After a weather delay, UNC clinched the doubles point after defeating Sonya Trescheva and Guzal Yusupova 6-2.
The Tar Heels continued to dominate heading into singles. Sofya Golubovskaya on the second singles court was the only SU player win their first singles set. But, Golubovskaya was unable to get the job done in time against No. 7 Alexa Graham as UNC made quick work of her teammates on the other courts.
No one else saw a glimmer of hope against their singles opponents. Gabriela Knutson had originally picked up a signature win against No. 5 Makenna Jones in their first meeting, but Jones had the upper hand in the tournament. She defeated Knutson in straight sets 6-4, 6-0.
Miranda Ramirez was also shut down at third singles, out dueled by No. 14 Sara Daavettila 6-3, 6-0.
Maria Tritou’s 6-1, 6-0 loss was the clincher for North Carolina. UNC dominated SU in every facet of the dual as the Orange were unable to force a third set on any of the singles courts.
Now, the Orange will have to wait and see where they will be seeded in the NCAA tournament. The selection show is Monday night at 6:30 p.m., broadcasted on NCAA.com.
bwklein@syr.edu | @BradKlein15
