CHAPEL HILL, N.C.—Illinois won the doubles point and held on to edge 16th-ranked North Carolina, 4-3, on Saturday afternoon in the ITA Kickoff Weekend at the Cone-Kenfield Indoor Courts at the Chewning Tennis Center.
The Illini advance to meet No. 17 Wake Forest in Sunday’s championship match of the North Carolina Regional at 2 p.m. Carolina will face Florida in the regional consolation match at 11 a.m. The Demon Deacons beat No. 20 Florida, 4-1, in Saturday’s first semifinal in Chapel Hill.
Illinois started strong by winning the doubles point. Mathis Debru and Kenta Miyoshi downed Peter Murphy and Patrick Schoen, 6-3, at No. 3 to start the afternoon. The Illini’s Hunter Heck and Karlis Ozolins, ranked fourth nationally, beat Will Jansen and Karl Poling, 6-4, at No. 2 to clinch the team point. Phillip Jordan and Benjamin Kittay were leading their match at No. 1, 5-4, when Illinois clinched.
The Tar Heels roared back with three consecutive wins to start singles play and take the lead, 3-1
Jansen tied the score with a quick win at No. 1, beating No. 55 Ozolins by a score of 6-3, 6-3. Soon thereafter, it was 2-1 Tar Heels when Princeton transfer Will Peters, ranked No. 83 nationally, beat Debru, 6-4, 6-4 at No. 6.
Kittay continued the hot start to his season when he beat Miyoshi, ranked 17th in the nation, at No. 3 singles by a score of 7-6 (5), 6-4 to give Carolina a 3-1 advantage.
Illinois responded and tied the score at 3-3 shortly thereafter.
Heck, ranked 46th, beat No. 50 Poling in three sets (6-3, 3-6, 6-3) at No. 2, and Alex Petrov beat Schoen, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, at No. 4 to tie the score at 3-all.
It came down to No. 5, where Jordan won the first set over William Mroz in a tiebreaker, 7-6 (5) before dropping the final two by 3-6 scores.
The North Carolina Regional of the ITA Kickoff Weekend will conclude on Sunday in Chapel Hill with another pair of matches.
Florida will meet Carolina in the consolation match at 11 a.m., and Wake Forest will face Illinois in the championship match at 2 p.m. The Wake Forest-Illinois winner will advance to the ITA National Team Indoor Championship next month in New York, N.Y.
Illinois vs North Carolina
Jan 27, 2024 at Chapel Hill, N.C. (Chewning/Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center)
Illinois 4, #16 North Carolina 3
Doubles competition
1. Phillip Jordan/Benjamin Kittay (NC) vs. Lucas Horve/Oliver Okonkwo (ILL) 5-4, unfinished
2. #4 Hunter Heck/Karlis Ozolins (ILL) def. Will Jansen/Karl Poling (NC) 6-4
3. Mathis Debru/Kenta Miyoshi (ILL) def. Peter Murphy/Patrick Schoen (NC) 6-3
Singles competition
1. Will Jansen (NC) def. #55 Karlis Ozolins (ILL) 6-3, 6-3
2. #46 Hunter Heck (ILL) def. #50 Karl Poling (NC) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
3. Benjamin Kittay (NC) def. #17 Kenta Miyoshi (ILL) 7-6 (7-5), 6-4
4. Alex Petrov (ILL) def. Patrick Schoen (NC) 7-6 (7-5), 6-2
5. William Mroz (ILL) def. Phillip Jordan (NC) 6-7 (2-7), 6-3, 6-3
6. #83 Will Peters (NC) def. Mathis Debru (ILL) 6-4, 6-4
Match Notes
Illinois 2-1
North Carolina 2-2; National ranking #16
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (1,6,3,2,4,5)
T-2:52
Kittay d. Miyoshi 7-6(5), 6-3 pic.twitter.com/NeydolykzF
— Carolina Men’s Tennis 🐏🎾 (@carolinatennis) January 27, 2024
UNC 1 Illinois 1 Jansen d. #55 Ozolins 6-3, 6-3 pic.twitter.com/NQcRzYZDIo
— Carolina Men’s Tennis 🐏🎾 (@carolinatennis) January 27, 2024