Orange Hosts #8 Tar Heels In Tennis

MATCH-13: No. 59 SYRACUSE ORANGE vs. NO. 8 NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS
Sunday, March 30 at 10 a.m. \| Drumlins Tennis Center
GAME COVERAGE:	Twitter: @Cuse \| @Cuse_Tennis \| Live Stats
SU LINKS:	Match Notes \| Roster \| Schedule \| Results
UNC LINKS:	Roster \| Schedule \| Results \| @UNC_wtennis

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The nationally-ranked No. 59 Syracuse tennis team faces one of its toughest challenges this season when it welcomes No. 8 North Carolina and the top-rated singles player in the country to Drumlins Tennis Center for a conference match on Sunday, March 30 at 10 a.m.

LAST TIME OUT:
SU split a pair of weekend matches, falling at then-ranked No. 13 Miami, 7-0, and upsetting previously-ranked No. 34 Boston College, 4-3, for the squad's third victory in its last five outings.

Against the Eagles, Syracuse split the first two doubles matches, but battled to win the last one behind senior Maddie Kobelt and freshman Valeria Salazar's tiebreaking 8-7 (7-4) win on the first court. In singles action, the deciding point came down to junior Komal Safdar, who for the second time this season had the edge and gave the Orange the win.

PROTECTING HOME COURT:
Since interim head coach Shelly George joined the Syracuse tennis program during the 2006-07 season, the SU tennis team is 55-8 in the Drumlins Tennis Center, including a 50-5 mark since 2008. That span included back-to-back undefeated seasons in 2010 and 2011 and a 25-home win streak that went from Feb. 22, 2009 through Feb. 24, 2012.

INCLUSION IN THE ITA RANKINGS:
For the first time in 2014, the Syracuse tennis team entered the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings, coming in at No. 60 on March 11. The Orange rose to No. 59 this week following a 4-3 win over then-ranked No. 34 Boston College. It is the highest ranking for SU since April 17, 2012 when the squad was 57th.

KOBELT CHASING THE CENTURY CLUB:
Senior co-captain Maddie Kobelt won her first five matches overall in ACC play and is 9-4 overall since beginning conference action. She needs just one more win to reach 100 career triumphs and become the 30th member of the Century Club at Syracuse.

SCOUTING THE TAR HEELS:
The eighth-ranked Tars Heels (17-3) have only lost three matches this season, two of which came to No. 1 Duke and the other to then-ranked No. 7 Texas A&M. North Carolina also has five top-25 wns, incuding top-five wins against Virginia and Georgia. Freshman Jamie Loeb is rated the number one singles player in the country by the ITA. Along with Loeb, Hayley Carter (7) and Caroline Price (47) all rank nationally in singles. North Carolina also has three doubles teams ranked in the top 44, with Loeb and Carter coming in at number three.

SERIES HISTORY:
North Carolina and Syracuse have played each other just three times before, with the last being in 1988. The Tar Heels currently hold a 3-0 edge.

UP NEXT:
The Orange will hit the road again with matches at Pittsburgh on Friday, April 4 at 5:30 p.m. and Maryland on Sunday, April 6 at 11 a.m.

Syracuse University Athletics

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