North Carolina Team Page
ATHENS, GA. - North Carolina's record-setting men's tennis season came to an end Sunday night as the Tar Heels dropped a 4-2 decision to second-ranked Oklahoma in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals at the Lindsey Hopkins Indoor Facility on the University of Georgia campus.
Carolina earned the doubles point and got a singles victory from Brayden Schnur at the #1 spot but #2-ranked Oklahoma prevailed to improve to 27-3 overall on the campaign. The Sooners will play in the NCAA semifinals Monday afternoon at 5 p.m.
UNC's record-setting 2013-14 season ended with a school record 27 victories and the second NCAA Tournament quarterfinal appearance in school history. Overall, UNC finished 27-6 and will have three representatives in the NCAA singles and doubles tournaments which begin later this week.
Due to rain in Athens on Sunday, the match was moved indoors and started an hour late at 5 p.m. It took four-and-a-half hours for the Sooners to prevail over the #7 Tar Heels whose valiant effort fell just short against an Oklahoma team with a host of nationally-ranked singles players.
Carolina played its best doubles of the entire season to claim the initial point of the match. The UNC freshman duo of Jack Murray and Ronnie Schneider finished with a 23-4 doubles ledger in their fantastic first year as they were first off the court, beating Alex Ghilea and Nick Papac 8-6 at #3 doubles. Just a few minutes later, 25th-ranked Brett Clark and Brayden Schnur won 8-5 at #1 doubles over Axel Alvarez and Dane Webb of the Sooners. Clark and Schnur improved to 18-5 on the season with the doubles victory.
The Tar Heels were unable to keep up the same level of momentum going in singles action, however, against an Oklahoma team with two players ranked in the Top 10 and four in the Top 55 of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings.
At #4 singles, Andrew Harris of the Sooners, ranked 53rd nationally, defeated UNC junior Oystein Steiro 6-1, 6-1 to tie the match at 1-1. At #3 and #2 singles, UNC won first sets but in both cases Oklahoma players rallied past the Tar Heels to claim a pair of victories and a 3-1 lead in the team score.
UNC sophomore Brett Clark saw his stellar sophomore campaign end with a 37-12 singles mark at #3 singles. Clark, ranked 78th nationally, fell to #41 Dane Webb 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.
At #2 singles, UNC freshman Ronnie Schneider dropped only his eighth match of the season and now stands 34-8 overall. Schneider, ranked 33rd, fell to seventh-ranked Axel Alvarez 6-7 (7-9), 6-0, 6-0. Schneider will continue his freshman season Wednesday in the NCAA singles tournament.
Carolina stayed in the match with a gutty come-from-behind victory over freshman Brayden Schnur at #1 singles. Schnur, ranked 15th nationally, defeated fifth-ranked Guillermo Alcorta of Oklahoma 6-7 (3-7), 6-3, 7-5. Schnur faced a match point in the 10th game of the third set but fought it off and won the final three games to take the win.
Oklahoma persevered however and clinched its semifinal berth with a win at #6 singles by Alex Ghilea over UNC's Nelson Vick. Freshman Jack Murray was in a position to win at #5 singles, leading Austin Siegel 6-3, 2-6, 4-1 before the match was called after the Sooners clinched.
The seventh-ranked Tar Heels will be represented later this week in the NCAA singles and doubles Championships, which begin on Wednesday. A pair of UNC freshmen - Brayden Schnur and Ronnie Schneider - will play in the singles bracket. Schnur will team with sophomore Brett Clark in the doubles tournament, which commences on Thursday.
NOTES
Carolina's NCAA quarterfinal appearance was its second in history. The Tar Heels also made the final 8 in 1992
Clark and Schneider led UNC with 37 and 34 singles victories, respectively, in 2013-14.
Carolina's 27 team wins are two more than the previous school record of 25 victories in both 1992 and 2006.
Nelson Vick and Oystein Steiro both recorded 22 singles wins in 2013-14. They combined for a 23-8 doubles mark.
Freshmen Brayden Schnur and Jack Murray did not play in the fall but had outstanding spring seasons. Schnur was 18-4 in singles and 20-5 overall in doubles. Murray was 19-7 in singles and 23-4 in doubles with Schneider.
UNC graduates only Vick from the starting lineup. The Tar Heels had three freshmen and one sophomore in the top five of the lineup.
Carolina had the best turnaround season in Tar Heel history. Carolina was 12-13 a year ago and missed the NCAA Tournament. UNC won 15 more matches in 2014 and advanced as far as it ever has in an NCAA Tournament.
#2 OKLAHOMA (27-3) def. #7 NORTH CAROLINA (27-6), 4-2 - Lindsey Hopkins Indoor Facility
Doubles (Order of finish: 3,1)
1. #25 Brett Clark/Brayden Schnur (NORTH CAROLINA) def. Axel Alvarez/Dane Webb (OKLAHOMA), 8-5
2. Guillermo Alcorta/Andrew Harris (OKLAHOMA) vs. Oystein Steiro/Nelson Vick (NORTH CAROLINA), 7-6, unf.
3. Jack Murray/Ronnie Schneider (NORTH CAROLINA) def. Alex Ghilea/Nick Papac (OKLAHOMA), 8-6
Singles (Order of finish: 4,3,2,1,6)
1. #15 Brayden Schnur (NORTH CAROLINA) def. #5 Guillermo Alcorta (OKLAHOMA), 6-7(3), 6-3, 7-5
2. #7 Axel Alvarez (OKLAHOMA) def. #33 Ronnie Schneider (NORTH CAROLINA), 6-7(7), 6-0, 6-0
3. #41 Dane Webb (OKLAHOMA) def. #78 Brett Clark (NORTH CAROLINA), 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
4. #53 Andrew Harris (OKLAHOMA) def. Oystein Sterio (NORTH CAROLINA), 6-1, 6-1
5. Austin Siegel (OKLAHOMA) vs. Jack Murray (NORTH CAROLINA), 3-6, 6-2, 1-4, unf.
6. Alex Ghilea (OKLAHOMA) def. Nelson Vick (NORTH CAROLINA), 6-2, 6-0
