W&M Men's Tennis Stuns No. 13 North Carolina With 4-1 Win

Tribe Drops Just One Match Against the Tar Heels

03/15/03

MONTGOMERY, AL - William and Mary's men's tennis team pulled off a big upset at the Blue-Gray Classic this afternoon, as the 52nd-ranked Tribe defeated No. 13 North Carolina, 4-1. W&M's record improves to 10-6, while the Tar Heels drop to 7-4.

The Tribe began by sweeping the two completed doubles matches to take the early, 1-0, lead. At No. 2 sophomore Alex Fish (Scituate, MA) and junior Geoff Russell (Phoenix, AZ) defeated Nicholas Monroe/Daniel Pinchbeck, 8-6. Sophomores Jeff Kader (Geneva, OH) and Zack Malmgren (Cibalo, TX) won their eighth-straight match, defeating Geoff Boyd/Andy Metzler at No. 3, 8-6.

W&M continued its inspired play in singles, taking three of the top four matches to clinch the win. The Tribe started with straight-set wins at three and four, as sophomore Sean Kelleher (Forty Fort, PA) defeated Derek Porter, 6-4, 6-4, and Russell defeated Metzler, also by a score of 6-4, 6-4. Kader clinched the College's win, with a come-from-behind, three-set victory at No. 2 over Nicholas Monroe, 4-6, 6-4, 7-5.

"The University of North Carolina always has a great program with a lot of pride and tradition," said W&M coach Peter Daub after the victory. "[UNC coach] Sam Paul does a great job of coaching. We were fortunate today to get a win and it's great for our program to have our first win over a top-20 team."

The Tribe returns to action next Sunday, March 23, for a 1:00 PM home match against Old Dominion at the College's Busch Tennis Courts.




#52 William and Mary 4, #13 North Carolina 1
Singles
1. #27 Trystan Meniane (UNC) d. Alex Fish; 6-4, 7-5
2. Jeff Kader (W&M) d, Nicholas Monroe; 4-6, 6-4, 7-5
3. Sean Kelleher (W&M) d. Derek Porter; 6-4, 6-4
4. Geoff Russell (W&M) d. Andy Metzler; 6-4, 6-4
5. Did not finish
6. Did not finish

Doubles
1. Did not finish
2. Fish/Russell (W&M) d. Monroe/Daniel Pinchbeck; 8-6
3. Kader/Zack Malmgren (W&M) d. Geoff Boyd/Metzler; 8-6