The Wake Forest men’s tennis team (25-2, 10-0 ACC) came into the weekend with its newly reestablished #1 overall spot. Some teams may struggle with the pressure coming off such a big victory the prior weekend, not the Deacs.
Wake Forest was on the road this weekend, taking on North Carolina in Chapel Hill and then Duke in Durham. Both of these matches resulted in 4-0 victories as the Deacs continue to establish themselves as the clear top dogs in the ACC as well as nationally. Let’s go through the highlights.
No Trouble with North Carolina
Friday’s match saw the Deacs stacked up against the #47-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels. Wake took immediate control of this one in doubles as the fifth-ranked pair of DK Suresh Ekambaram and Andrew Delgado cruised to a 6-0 victory over a top-20 doubles pair on court one. The pair of Mees Rottgering and Kacper Szymkowiak continued their good play as well, winning 6-2 to clinch the point.
Wake Forest carried this great momentum from doubles into singles play. They grabbed first set victories on courts one, two, four, five, and six. It was Joaquin Guilleme on court six putting the first singles point on the board, winning 6-4, 6-2.
Mees Rottgering, who has become a staple on court two, claimed a 6-3, 6-3 victory to give the Deacs a commanding 3-0 lead. Ultimately, it was DK Suresh defeating a ranked opponent on court one by the score of 7-6 (3), 6-3 to get the job done and clinch the 4-0 sweep.
Dominating Duke
It is always a bit sweeter when a Wake sports team can knock off the Duke Blue Devils, especially in dominant fashion. The Deacs grabbed the early advantage in doubles as Luca Pow and Aryan Shah pulled out a dominant 6-1 victory on court three.
Despite this big win, the two other doubles courts were tightly contested all the way until the finish. The court two doubles pair of Mees Rottgering and Kacper Szymkowiak showed great toughness, coming back from being down a break to win 7-5 and clinch the doubles point.
After this, the Deacs cruised in singles. Joaquin Guilleme capped off his great weekend, this time on court four, winning by a perfect 6-0, 6-0 margin. Freshman Aryan Shah played five singles and secured a 6-1, 6-2 win, making it a great day all-around for him. Luca Pow got the team over the finish line with a 6-3, 6-2 victory on court three.
ACC Standings Check
As we near the end of the season, it’s important to see where things stand in the race for the ACC Conference Title. The Deacs are at the top with their flawless 10-0 record in conference play. Right behind them are the Virginia Cavaliers, who Wake beat at home last weekend, at 9-1. Notre Dame and NC State are next up and tied at 8-2. Wake already dominated Notre Dame at home earlier in the season and will get NC State to wrap up the regular season in Winston-Salem.
What’s Next?