RALEIGH, N.C. — The No. 45 Clemson women’s tennis team (11-4, 1-3 ACC) fell to No. 4 NC State on Sunday by a score of 6-1. Despite the score, one Tiger secured a ranked win, and two others brought two ranked singles players to a third set.
“The score did not reflect how much heart and fight the girls put into the match,” remarked Head Coach Amy Sargeant. “NC state are a top 5 team, are physical and play to win. The better teams don’t give you anything and we are continuing to play to the level of a top program.”
The Wolfpack quickly took the doubles point, and came out firing in singles. NC State won the first three singles matches to clinch the match victory, but the Tigers were battling in all three remaining matches to earn points.
Eleni Louka facing off against No. 15 Alana Smith on Court 1 took the first set. In the third-set 10-point tiebreak, she came up just short, dropping the match 6-2, 1-6, 7-10. Dani Medvedeva was able to defeat the No. 51 ranked singles player in straight sets, winning 7-6 (7-5), 6-3 to earn the Tigers’ only point of the day.
Sophia Hatton suffered her first loss of the season on Sunday to fall to 9-1, as she came up just shy of a win against No. 69 Sophie Abrams by a score of 6-3, 2-6, 11-13.
“We took three first sets playing confident, aggressive and disciplined tennis. The difference in the end was staying focused and playing points on our terms. Today we got better as a team, and were challenged to step up. It’s been a tough few weeks on the road but we will continue to grow and embrace the journey.”
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