May 17, 2008

Cavaliers Top Michigan to Reach NCAA Quarterfinals

TULSA, Okla. - Top-seeded Virginia advanced to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals for the fourth consecutive year with a 4-0 win over No. 16 Michigan in a Round of 16 match Friday at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center. The Cavaliers needed just two-and-a-half hours to dispatch of the Wolverines and win their school-record 31st match of the season.

"This was a great way to start the tournament for us," said head coach Brian Boland. "We played really well, especially in doubles. We have been working on it a lot and that seems to be paying off. We are really clicking on all cylinders right now."

The Cavaliers (31-0) grabbed the early 1-0 lead with a dominating doubles performance. At No. 3 doubles, Houston Barrick (Brentwood, Tenn.) and Sanam Singh (Chandigarh, India) cruised to an 8-3 win over Chris Madden and George Navas. Dominic Inglot (London, England) and Michael Shabaz (Fairfax, Va.) broke a 4-4 tie with Jason Jung and Mike Sroczynski by winning the last four games to score an 8-4 win at No. 2 doubles and clinch the opening point.

North Carolina Falls to Ole Miss in Round of 16

TULSA, Okla. - The 12th-seeded UNC Tar Heels' trip to the Sweet Sixteen of college tennis came to an early end Friday afternoon, as a 1-0 lead after doubles quickly vanished when the 5th-seeded Ole Miss Rebels outplayed North Carolina in singles en route to a 4-2 victory. Mississippi will advance to face 4th-seeded Georgia (24-3) on Sunday for a berth in the Final Four on Monday.

The Tar Heels jumped out to an early 1-0 lead after doubles, the third doubles point UNC won in as many tries in the NCAA tournament. Seniors Tristan Heinrich and David Stone set the pace with an 8-5 victory over Jakob Klaeson and Tucker Vorster at the third doubles spot, and sophomores Stefan Hardy and Clay Donato clinched the point by beating Bram ten Berge and Matthias Wellerman 8-6. Sandwiched in between was a top-10 doubles team showdown, as Ole Miss' fifth-ranked duo of Jonas Berg and Erling Tveit prevailed 8-4 over North Carolina's sixth-ranked team of Taylor Fogleman and Chris Kearney.

Singles play then began, and Ole Miss wasted no time in winning consecutive matches to put the team score at 3-1. UNC bounced back with an upset win at number four singles, as 95th-ranked Bram ten Berge retired in the third set to give a win to All-ACC singles player Clay Donato. However, a three-set loss by Hardy at the second singles slot closed the match out at a final score of 4-2.

Florida State vs. UCLA, 7 p.m. ET