(Provided by Tennis World USA)
The North Carolina State University women tennis team reached the semifinals of the NCAA team championships, after a thrilling 4-3 victory over Iowa State. The NC State gets a 10 game winning streak leading up to the Final Four of the tournament.
NC State’s record is 27-4 and the team has secured 14 decisions over top 25 opponents this season. The program’s only Final Four appearance was in 2021. Now, the Wolfpack will face Stanford in the semifinal round on Friday, May 19 at 5 p.m.
at the USTA National Campus in Orlando. Sophie Abrams and Abigail Rencheli got off to a start out of the gate as they made it 4-0 on the third court. The courts one and two remained close, as both resulted in a 2-2 draw. At that point, No.
4 Diana Shnaider and Alana Smith closed out the competition by taking the doubles point with a 6-3 finish over No. 54 Iowa State Naklo and Kuearum. In singles, seventh-placed Shnaider showcased her experience by not giving up a single game with a 6-0, 6-0 finish against No.
60 Thasaporn Naklo. The Wolfpack held a 2-0 lead over the Cycles for quite some time until Rencheli and Abrams fell in straight sets on court five and four respectively. Smith also fell in straight sets on court two to her ranked opponent.
All faith rested on Rajecki on court three and Gina Dittmann on court six. Dittmann was able to pull the win out of her own and put the momentum back into the hands of the Pack. Though she lost the first two games of her final set, with the support of her teammates and fans, Rajecki tied the score at 2-2.
Then it went on to lead 4-2 which gave confidence to the red and white. Making the game 6-3, Rajecki finally grabbed the win with an ace as her teammates ran to celebrate their outrun.
Women’s doubles
1. #4 Diana Shnaider/Alana Smith (ST) def.
#54 Thasaporn Naklo/Supapitch Kuearum, A (ISU) 6-3
2. #77 Ange Oby Kajuru/Xinyi Nong (ISU) vs. #9 Nell Miller/Amelia Rajecki (ST) 5-3, unfinished
3. Sophie Abrams/Abigail Rencheli (ST) def. Miska Kadleckova/Sofia Cabezas (ISU) 6-2
Women’s singles
1.
#7 Diana Shnaider (ST) def. #60 Thasaporn Naklo (ISU) 6-0, 6-0
2. #66 Ange Oby Kajuru (ISU) def. #13 Alana Smith (ST) 7-5, 6-4
3. #26 Amelia Rajecki (ST) def. Miska Kadleckova (ISU) 7-6 (7-4), 4-6, 6-
4. Supapitch Kuearum, A (ISU) def.
#87 Abigail Rencheli (ST) 6-2, 6-4
5. Sofia Cabezas (ISU) def. Sophie Abrams (ST) 6-1, 7-6 (7-2)
6. Gina Dittmann (ST) def. Chie Kezuka (ISU) 6-2, 3-6, 6-4
About North Carolina State University
The North Carolina State University is a public US university located in Raleigh, North Carolina.
The university was founded on March 7, 1887 as the North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts and later became the North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering in 1918; it assumed its current name only in 1962.
By number of students it is the largest university in the state and is one of the three universities that form the Research Triangle (the others are Duke and North Carolina in Chapel Hill). The NC State Wolfpack, which is part of NCAA Division I, is affiliated with the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Basketball, baseball, and American football are the major sports, home games being played at Carter-Finley Stadium and indoors at the PNC Arena.
