Top-Ranked Virginia Downs No. 17 North Carolina 5-2

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CHARLOTTESVILLE – The top-ranked Virginia men’s tennis team won Sunday’s match between the two remaining undefeated teams in ACC play, downing No. 17 North Carolina 5-2 Sunday afternoon in front of 548 fans at the Snyder Tennis Center. The Cavaliers (22-0, 7-0 ACC) extended their ACC-record win streak to 70 consecutive victories over conference competition and their school record home winning streak to 85 matches, while the Tar Heels fell to 10-5 overall and 5-1 in the conference.

In doubles, the Cavaliers took a 1-0 lead by winning the doubles point. Alex Domijan (Wesley Chapel, Fla.) and Steven Rooda (Amersfoort, The Netherlands) topped Cameron Ahari and Alex Rafiee 8-3 at No. 3 to give UVa the early advantage. Michael Shabaz (Fairfax, Va.) and Drew Courtney (Clifton, Va.) followed with an 8-5 win at No. 1 over Brennan Boyajian and Jose Hernandez to clinch the first point for the Cavaliers.

In singles, the Tar Heels tied the match at 1-1 as Joey Burkhardt defeated Jarmere Jenkins (College Park, Ga.) 6-3, 6-1 at No. 4. Virginia retook the lead when Courtney downed William Parker 6-3, 6-4 at No. 5 and seconds later Sanam Singh (Chandigarh, India) closed out a 6-3, 6-2 win over Stefan Hardy at No. 3 to make the score 3-1. Domijan clinched the victory with his 6-1, 6-3 win at No. 2 over Boyajian. Julen Uriguen (Guatemala City, Guatemala) added a win at No. 6 over Taylor Meyer before Hernandez topped Shabaz in three sets at No. 1 in the final match on the courts.

“I am pleased to get the win,” said head coach Brian Boland. “We could have played better in some places. North Carolina played with a lot of energy and there were some spots where we didn’t match it. We had two tough matches this weekend against good Duke and Carolina teams. I think it is good for our team to face some adversity because that is how we will improve as a team. We are going to continue to work hard and we know that the most important part of the season is still ahead of us.”

The Cavaliers will travel to NC State on Friday and Wake Forest on Sunday for their final road matches of the regular season.

#1 Virginia 5, #17 North Carolina 2

Doubles
1. #2 Shabaz/Courtney (UVa) def. #21 Boyajian/Hernandez (UNC) 8-5
2. #59 Burkhardt/Hardy (UNC) def. Singh/Jenkins (UVa) 8-5
3. Domijan/Rooda (UVa) def. Ahari/Rafiee (UNC) 8-3

Singles
1. #38 Jose Hernandez (UNC) def. #5 Michael Shabaz (UVa) 5-7, 6-4, 6-4
2. #2 Alex Domijan (UVa) def. Brennan Boyajian (UNC) 6-1, 6-3
3. #25 Sanam Singh (UVa) def. Stefan Hardy (UNC) 6-3, 6-2
4. Joey Burkhardt (UNC) def. #44 Jarmere Jenkins (UVa) 6-3, 6-1
5. #37 Drew Courtney (UVa) def. William Parker (UNC) 6-3, 6-4
6. Julen Uriguen (UVa) def. Taylor Meyer (UNC) 7-5, 6-3

Order of Finish
Doubles: 3,1,2
Singles: 4,5,3,2,6,1