NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The No. 20/27 Vanderbilt men’s tennis fell 6-1 to the No. 4 North Carolina Tar Heels on Monday afternoon. With the loss the squad heads into conference play with an 8-4 record.
Monday’s matinee began with a close doubles battle. However, the Tar Heels walked away with the point advantage following a pair of 6-3 victories on courts one and three. On court two, Lachlan McPhee and Billy Rowe were on match point against Jack Murray and Simon Soendergaard, 5-3, when the point was clinched.
In singles, No. 61 Cameron Klinger quickly leveled the team score as the sophomore defeated Soendergaard in straight sets, 6-3, 6-3. The Tar Heels took the next five singles matches for the clinch, with four coming in close straight set competitions.
UNC extended its advantage as No. 107 Will Blumberg defeated VU’s No. 114 Daniel Valent, 7-5, 6-2. Baker Newman nearly took his first set tiebreaker against No. 67 Robert Kelly, 7-6(6). The junior from Chapel Hill captured the second set and the 2-1 lead, taking the second set on court three, 6-2.
The Commodores had three close matches remaining on their hands as McPhee and Rowe battled their opponents throughout every game on courts four and five, respectively. Panu Virtanen later began his match following Klinger’s victory, which went to a 10-point tiebreaker.
North Carolina’s Blaine Boyden earned the first set victory over Rowe on court four, 6-3. The Tar Heel escaped with the victory and match clincher, taking the second set 7-5.
McPhee pulled off the 7-5 lead in the first set over Jack Murray, with both opponents holding serve until the first set reached five games all. Murray powered through his second and third sets for the 5-1 lead, 5-7, 6-1, 6-3.
Virtanen cruised through his first set with limited unforced errors with a 6-3 lead over Arturo Schmidt. The Tar Heel used the loss as motivation to claim the second set, 6-2, and force the deciding 10-point tiebreaker. Schmidt delivered the Commodores their final blow, taking the breaker, 3-6, 6-2, 1-0(5).
Vandy now looks to begin its run in conference play, hosting Georgia on Friday at 4 pm and in-state rival Tennessee on Sunday at 4 pm.
