No. 9 Virginia upset No. 6 North Carolina 4-3 Monday at the Boar's Head Sports Club in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers (4-0, 0-0 ACC) rallied in singles play, with senior Melodie Collard clinching the winning point, to overcome an early deficit after they dropped the doubles point against the Tar Heels (3-1, 0-0 ACC).
In doubles, seniors and national champions Collard and Elaine Chervinsky, the country’s third-ranked duo, delivered a decisive opening win, 6-1, against the No. 26 duo of freshman Susana Maltby and senior Carson Tanguilig. However, North Carolina took the next two doubles matches to secure the opening point.
On Court 3, Tar Heel sophomores Tatum Evans and Thea Rabman defeated graduate student Sara Ziodato and freshman Karolina Kozakova, 6-3. Carolina clinched the doubles point on Court 2, where junior Reese Brantmeier and freshman Alanis Hamilton beat junior Annabelle Xu and freshman Martina Genis Salas, 6-4, to give North Carolina a 1-0 lead heading into singles.
Virginia responded well in singles play, winning four out of six matches to claim the overall victory. No. 32 Xu got the Cavaliers on the board with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Brantmeier on Court 1. No. 34 Chervinsky followed with a commanding 6-1, 6-0 victory over No. 20 senior Carson Tanguilig on Court 2, giving Virginia its first lead of the day.
No. 51 Ziodato extended the Cavaliers’ advantage with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Hamilton on Court 4, putting Virginia one point away from clinching the match. On Court 5, Genis Salas fell to Evans in two sets, 3-6, 1-6.
No. 9 Rabman prevailed in a tight 7-6 (6), 6-3 contest over Kozakova on Court 3. Kozakova chased down every ball at the baseline, but ultimately was overpowered and made a few too many errors.
With the match hanging in the balance, all eyes turned to Court 6, where No. 59 Collard battled North Carolina freshman Claire Hill in a thrilling three-set match. Collard was the star of the show today, clinching the final point for Virginia in a nail-biting three-set singles match, 5-7, 7-6, 6-4.
Not only did Collard edge her opponent in the second set of a seven-point tiebreaker, she came back from being 3-0 down in the third when the Cavaliers were tied for the match at 3-3. Collard was consistent and patient, varying her baseline play with slices and drop shots.
Ultimately, Virginia emerged victorious in this top-10 showdown, delivering an excellent comeback after losing the doubles point. Collard’s performance was the most clear portrayal of this resilience, as she won a close tiebreaker and came back in the third set to secure the match for Virginia.
“[Collard] just was such a great example of what we want this team to be,” Coach Sara O’Leary said. “She was organized. She was resilient. She was gritty. And just a killer out there every single point in that third set. She just made the other player earn it. [Her opponent] was playing really, really well.”
After losing to the Tar Heels last season, both in a dual match and in the ACC Championships, Monday’s victory is a positive sign for the spring ahead. Up next, the Cavaliers will look to build on this momentum as they host New Mexico Friday at 1 p.m. for the ITA Kickoff Weekend at Boar’s Head.
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