May 16, 2008

The No. 12 North Carolina men's tennis team's magnificent season came to a close Friday afternoon after a nearly four-hour marathon match in the NCAA Sweet 16 against favored Ole Miss, the No. 5 seed. The Tar Heels claimed the doubles point with wins at No. 2 by Stefan Hardy and Clay Donato and at No. 3 doubles by Tristan Heinrich and David Stone before the Rebels roared back to win straight set victories in singles at No. 1, No. 3 and No. 6. The Tar Heels won the first set on the other three singles courts but Ole Miss rallied to win at No. 2 to clinch the match 4-1. Carolina's season ended 21-6, the fourth time in the last five years UNC has reached the 20-win plateau and the fourth time in the last five years Carolina has been a Top 16 NCAA seed. Taylor Fogleman and Chris Kearney will look forward to competing in the NCAA doubles competition bext week in Tulsa.