CLEMSON, SC – The 23rd-ranked Clemson women’s tennis team gave No. 8 North Carolina all they could handle on Sunday at the Hoke Sloan Tennis Center. In the end, The Tar Heels (16-4, 6-0 ACC) outlasted Clemson (11-8, 4-3 ACC), 5-2, to hand the Tigers a second consecutive defeat to a top-ten opponent. Four singles matches went to three sets, and the match was not decided for more than four hours on the outdoor courts, which saw temperatures in the mid-eighties. Clemson received three-set singles wins from Beatrice Gumulya and Klara Vyskocilova, while Josipa Bek and Keri Wong each dropped three-set decisions to top-35 national opponents. The doubles point was just about as hotly contested as it gets in collegiate tennis. All three matches commanded nine games won to claim a decision, while the marquee match went deep into a tiebreaker before rendering the decision. It was unique as two separate doubles teams took 7-4 leads and lost their matches. For Clemson, Monika Kochanova and Klara Vyskocilova climbed out of a 7-4 hole against Gina Suarez-Malaguti and won, 9-7. They improved to 19-5 on the season together, and 15-2 at the third doubles position. On the other side of the equation was Romy Kölzer and Beatrice Gumulya, who held a 7-4 lead, but dropped their match to No. 71 Tessa Lyons and Haley Hemm, 9-7. Both of those sent the doubles point to court one, where Bek and Wong, formerly ranked No. 1 in the nation, were taking on No. 4 Shinann Featherston and Lauren McHale. The Tiger duo took a 5-3 lead early, but UNC held twice and broke Wong to go up 6-5. The teams traded games all the way to 8-8, setting up the tiebreaker. Neither team was able to grab much of an edge, but the Tar Heel tandem finally claimed the point with a 12-10 win in the tiebreak set. The doubles was just an appetizer for the tremendous singles competition to follow. Clemson claimed the first set at each of the top four positions, and had a chance to grab it at both five and six. Kölzer had a 5-4 lead against No. 98 Caroline Price, before the Tar Heel battled back to win, 7-5. Kochanova ran out to a 4-0 lead on Lyons before she responded and eventually took the first set in a tiebreak, 7-6 (4). These two would be the first to fall as Price and Lyons each took down the Tiger counterparts in straight sets, while each of their four teammates forced a third set at the top four flights. Gumulya earned her second win of the weekend and improved to 6-1 in ACC play in outlasting Suarez-Malaguti, 6-4, 5-7, 6-1. This came on the heels of defeating Rachel Kahan of Duke on Friday, a player than had been 15-0 in her ACC career. Vyskocilova won her seventh match in her last eight outings and won her 20th match of the season as she outlasted Featherston, 6-1, 5-7, 6-5 on court three. The Tiger sophomore now leads Clemson in singles and doubles wins this season. The Tigers trailed 3-2 with decisions at one and two still pending. Wong, ranked 55th in the country, was locked, 4-4 in the third set with No. 33 Lauren McHale, while No. 30 Zoe De Bruycker held a 4-3 lead on Josipa Bek on two. Both Tar Heels wore down the Tigers, and McHale watched Wong’s forehand sail long for her 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 win to clinch the match. De Bruycker earned her decision just a moment later, a 5-7, 6-1, 6-3 win against Bek. Clemson will travel to Virginia Tech and Virginia next weekend in a pair of key ACC showdowns. The Tigers played two marathon matches against top-ten opponents this weekend, playing for more than eight total hours with the opposing clubs. No. 8 North Carolina (16-4, 6-0 ACC) def. No. 23 Clemson (11-8, 4-3 ACC), 5-2April 1, 2012 – Hoke Sloan Tennis Center – Clemson, SCDoubles:1. #4 Featherston/McHale (NC) def. #17 Bek/Wong (CU), 9-8 (10)2. #71 Lyons/Hemm (NC) def. Gumulya/Kölzer(CU), 9-73. Kochanova/Vyskocilova (CU) def. Suarez-Malaguti/Price (NC), 9-7Order of Finish: 2,3,1*Singles:1.  #33 Lauren McHale (NC) def. #55 Keri Wong (CU), 4-6, 6-4, 7-52. #30 Zoe De Bruycker (NC) def. Josipa Bek (CU), 5-7, 6-1, 6-33. #88 Klara Vyskocilova (CU) def. #100 Shinann Featherston (NC), 6-1, 5-7, 6-44. Beatrice Gumulya (CU) def. Gina Suarez-Malaguti (NC), 6-4, 5-7, 6-15. #98 Caroline Price (NC) def. Romy Kölzer (CU), 7-5, 6-36. Tessa Lyons (NC) def. Monika Kochanova (CU), 7-6(4), 6-2Order of Finish: 5,6,4,3,2,1

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