CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – No. 16 Arizona fell 1-4 in a hard fought battle against No. 15 North Carolina in the second round of the NCAA tournament. The Cats dropped the doubles point after three intense matches, two of which ended with tiebreakers, and only took home one singles point.
Carlos Hassey and Gustaf Strom finished first, falling 4-6 to Casey Kania and Logan Zapp. Finishing second was the No. 50 doubles pair Jonas Ziverts and Herman Hoeyeraal, who defeated the No. 16 doubles pair Brian Cernoch and Mac Kiger 7-6(8-6). Jared Horwood and Colton Smith lost their match 6-7() against Benjamin Sigouin and Peter Murphy.
The Wildcats fought every second in each of their singles matches. No. 53 Strom finished first 3-6, 4-6 against Sigouin. No. 116 Hoeyeraal put Arizona on the board after he defeated Zapp in straight sets 6-4, 6-3. No. 52 Ziverts came up short losing 6-7, 3-6 to No. 16 Cernoch.
Nick Lagaev faced Murphy in a tiebreaker for their first set and ultimately fell 6-7, 4-6. Hassey forced a third set against Anuj Watane before their match went unfinished (3-6, 6-2, 5-2 unf.), and Smith was down in his third set against Kiger before their match also went unfinished (7-6, 4-6, 4-5 unf.).
The men’s tennis team turned heads and made waves in the rankings while rewriting their program history this season. This was the third year in a row that the Cats made it to the NCAA tournament, and it certainly won’t be the last.
Results
#15 North Carolina 4, #16 Arizona 1
Singles competition
1. #33 Brian Cernoch (NC) def. #52 Jonas Ziverts (ARIZ) 7-6, 6-3
2. Benjamin Sigouin (NC) def. #53 Gustaf Strom (ARIZ) 6-3, 6-4
3. Mac Kiger (NC) vs. Colton Smith (ARIZ) 6-7, 6-4, 5-4, unfinished
4. #116 Herman Hoeyeraal (ARIZ) def. Logan Zapp (NC) 6-4, 6-3
5. Anuj Watane (NC) vs. Carlos Hassey (ARIZ) 6-3, 2-6, 2-5, unfinished
6. Peter Murphy (NC) def. Nick Lagaev (ARIZ) 7-6, 6-4
Order of finish: 2, 4, 1, 6
Doubles competition
1. #50 Jonas Ziverts/Herman Hoeyeraal (ARIZ) def. #16 Brian Cernoch/Mac Kiger (NC) 6-6, 8-6
2. Casey Kania/Logan Zapp (NC) def. Carlos Hassey/Gustaf Strom (ARIZ) 6-6, 7-4
3. Benjamin Sigouin/Peter Murphy (NC) def. Colton Smith/Jared Horwood (ARIZ) 6-4
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at University of Arizona Athletics…