Wake Forest University
NC State
Wake Forest Primed for Trio of Matches on the Road
3/7/2024 4:36:00 PM | Women's Tennis
The Demon Deacons will look to improve to 3-0 in ACC play Friday.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Following a perfect 2-0 weekend to open conference play, the Wake Forest women's tennis team is set to hit the road for three matches this weekend, including an ACC clash with Big Four rival No. 6 NC State Friday at J.W. Isenhour Tennis Center. On Sunday, the Demon Deacons will head to Greenville, S.C. for a doubleheader against Furman and Western Carolina.
First serve for the match against the Wolfpack is set for 12 p.m., while Sunday's matches are slated for 11 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. against the Paladins and Catamounts, respectively.
The Demon Deacons (8-5, 2-0 ACC) come into the weekend having won six of their last seven matches, including three wins over top-30 opponents in No. 25 Yale, No. 24 Illinois and most recently a 4-3 comeback victory over No. 26 Notre Dame. Additionally, the Deacs are 2-0 in ACC play for the first time since 2019.
Individually, the Deacs are led by senior Senior Casie Wooten, who has now won eight-consecutive singles matches after her 6-4, 6-4 victory over Notre Dame's Paige Freeman last weekend. The California-native leads the team with an 8-2 record over the first 13 matches of dual play and has not lost to an unranked opponent since last spring.
Since the start of the fall, Wooten is 15-5 with six wins over ranked opponents. Additionally, she is 4-0 since cracking the top 30 in the ITA National Singles rankings. She has already been named ACC Player of the Week twice this season, which marked the first Demon Deacon to achieve the honor multiple times in a season since Bea Bielik in 2002.
In doubles, senior Brooke Killingsworth and graduate student Marcella Cruz have led the charge for Wake Forest, helping the Deacs take the doubles point in nine of their 13 matches so far this season. As a pair, the duo is 5-3 in dual play this season with a ranked win over No. 27 Akli/Lancelot of South Carolina (Feb. 17). The performance against South Carolina saw them named ACC Doubles Team of the Week, the first Wake Forest pair to achieve the honor.
Admission is free and both matches can be streamed on Track Tennis. Live results will be available here.
Schedule
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Friday, March 8
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12 p.m. - at No. 6 NC State
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Sunday, March 10
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11 a.m. - at Furman
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3:30 p.m. - vs. Western Carolina
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Series History
Versus NC State
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Series: Wake Forest leads, 48-16
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Last Time: Feb. 17, 2023
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Result: L, 0-7
Versus Furman
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Series: Wake Forest leads, 29-1
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Last Time: Feb. 11, 2023
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Result: W, 5-2
Versus Western Carolina
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Series: Wake Forest leads, 2-0
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Last Time: Feb. 9, 2019
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Result: W, 70
Scouting the Opposition
Similar to the Deacs, NC State comes into the weekend 2-0 in ACC play. It's currently 12-3 overall on the back of fourth-consecutive wins. Earlier this season, the Wolfpack made a run to the semifinals of the ITA National Indoor Championships, where they fell to No. 4 Michigan, 4-1. At home, they are a perfect 9-0 heading into the weekend and have won 23-consecutive matches at the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Center dating back to Feb. 4 of last year.
Despite holding a stellar 48-16 record over the Wolfpack, the Demon Deacons have dropped 10-consecutive matches against their Big Four foe since 2015.
Individually, NC State is led by No. 3 Amelia Rajecki, who has posted a 12-1 record in dual play to open the season while playing in first singles. She has won seven-consecutive matches heading into the weekend, including wins over No. 9 Kari Miller (Michigan) and No. 28 Fiona Crawley (North Carolina).
The Wolfpack have taken 11 of the 15 possible doubles points this season, including four in row. They have two ranked doubles pairings in Sophie Abrams/Anna Zyryanova (No. 9) and Amelia Rajecki/Maddy Zampardo (No. 10).
Furman is currently 3-9 overall and 2-1 at home so far this season. It is coming off of a 4-2 road win over North Florida Thursday afternoon, which snapped a four-match losing streak. Freshman Macy Hitchcock leads the team with six wins while playing in fifth singles.
Western Carolina has dropped five-consecutive matches after opening the season 8-1. On Feb. 25, it opened conference play with a 7-0 defeat to ETSU. On a neutral court, the Catamounts are 0-1 this season with the lone instance coming against Boston University in Charlotte, which resulted in a 4-0 loss.
Individually, sophomore Jade Groen leads the team with an 8-4 singles record, including an 8-1 mark while playing in second singles.
Ranked Opponents
Singles
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No. 3 - Amelia Rajecki (NC State)
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No. 34 - Anna Zyryanova (NC State)
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No. 37 - Abigail Rencheli (NC State)
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No. 82 - Sophie Abrams (NC State)
Doubles
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No. 9 - Sophie Abrams/Anna Zyryanova (NC State)
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No. 10 - Amelia Rajecki/Maddy Zampardo (NC State)
Last Time Out
After three come-from-behind singles victories, the Wake Forest women's tennis team took down No. 26 Notre Dame, 4-3, Sunday afternoon (March 3) at the Wake Forest Tennis Center.
Senior Casie Wooten won her eighth-consecutive singles match with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Notre Dame's Paige Freeman. The California-native leads the team with an 8-2 record over the first 13 matches of dual play and has not lost to an unranked opponent since last spring.
Sophomore Nevena Carton (1-6, 6-3, 6-2) and freshman Sankavi Gownder (3-6, 6-4, 6-4) both battled back and completed impressive comebacks in fourth and fifth singles, respectively, and gave Wake Forest a 3-2 lead.
Gownder now ranks second on the team with seven wins to just two losses in dual play this campaign and extended her winning streak to four matches. Carton's victory also marked her fourth-consecutive and her fifth overall in dual play.
Sophomore Whitley Pate closed out the match with a comeback victory of her own in sixth singles, as she took down Nibi Ghosh (3-6, 6-1, 7-5) and clinched the victory for Wake Forest. She remains unbeaten in dual play this season with four wins to zero losses.
Wake Forest is now 16-17 all-time against Notre Dame and have now won two-consecutive meetings against the Fighting Irish.
Up Next
Following Sunday, Wake Forest will head north to close out a five-game road stretch with a pair of matches at Boston College (Friday, March 15) and Syracuse (Sunday, March 17). First serve for the clash with the Eagles is slated for 3 p.m.
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