Michigan State University
North Carolina
No. 17 Tar Heels Defeat Spartans At Chapel Hill
2/3/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Feb. 3, 2008
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - The Michigan State women's tennis team competed against the No. 17 North Carolina Tar Heels on Sunday afternoon, at the Cone-Kenfield Indoor Tennis Center in Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels used the momentum of a victory in the doubles point, to win five of six singles flights, defeating the Spartans, 6-1.
North Carolina set the pace of the match after taking down MSU in the doubles matches, 8-2, 8-3, 8-5. At No. 1 doubles, Sanaz Marand and Sophie Grabinski, ranked No. 8 in the nation, defeated MSU's Christine Bader and Stephanie Kebler, 8-2. At No. 3, MSU's Ana Milosavljevic and Lindsey Lonergan were taken out by Meg Fanjoy and Austin Smith, 8-5.
In singles play, MSU's No. 3 Kebler had a big win over UNC's Smith, downing the No. 72 player in the nation in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4. At No. 1, UNC's Katrina Tsang defeated Bader, 6-2, 7-6 (4), while MSU's Manon Noe was taken out by No. 14 Marand, 6-3, 6-0, in the second singles flight.
"Our doubles was not real sharp today, and we really dug ourselves a hole, momentum wise," said MSU head coach Erica Perkins. "In singles, however, we came out aggressive and were competitive at a lot of positions. Stephanie Kebler came out and played some of the most composed and aggressive tennis that I've ever seen her play. Michelle (Murphy) and Christine (Bader) also fought really hard, and nearly pulled off second-set comebacks. We learned a lot of things on this trip, and I think we played good tennis all weekend."
Michigan State returns home for its next matchup, as it entertains Indiana State at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 9 at the MSU Indoor Tennis Facility in East Lansing.
Players Mentioned
