April 4, 2008
Final Stats
Coral Gables, Fla... Freshman Carl Sundberg battled back from a third-set deficit to lead the 27th-ranked University of Miami men's tennis team in a come-from-behind 4-3 victory over No. 44 NC State on Friday afternoon at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center.
Trailing 3-4 in the decisive third set, Sundberg stayed composed and won three-straight games to clinch the 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 victory and the match for the Hurricanes (10-6, 3-4 ACC), who snapped a four-match skid with Friday's win.
NC State (11-10, 4-4 ACC) built a 3-1 lead, forcing Miami into a must-win situation in all three remaining singles matches at No. 1, 2 and 4. Vivek Subramanian used a tough 6-2, 7-5 straight-sets victory to earn Miami's second point of the afternoon, while fifth-ranked All-American Daniel Vallverdu bounced back from a first-set loss to defeat No. 64 James McGee, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4, and knot the match at 3-all with his team-leading 22nd singles victory of the season.
With the match riding on his shoulders, Sundberg clinched the victory for the Hurricanes and picked up his 12th singles victory of his inaugural collegiate season.
"It feels really good to win that final match for the team," said Sundberg. "We have been struggling lately, so it was gratifying to be able to pull this off. I have had some tight matches in the third set, so it feels good to win."
"Carl won a huge match for us today," added fourth-year head Miami coach Mario Rincon. "As a freshman, that's not an easy thing to accomplish. Danny had to fight hard to win at No. 1 against a really tough opponent, and Vivek just played amazing in singles for us today.
"We can play better and we will have to play better. We will have a challenge on our hands on Sunday - Senior Day - versus Wake Forest."
The Hurricanes got off to a slow start in doubles play, but came firing back. Miami's 35th-ranked duo of Vallverdu and Sundberg trailed 3-2, but won five-straight games to claim the 8-3 victory in the top flight over NC State's ninth-ranked tandem of Jay Weinacker and Nick Cavaday. With the win, Vallverdu and Sundberg improved to 3-1 on the season versus ranked opponents.
At No. 2, the 36th-ranked pair of David Rosenfeld and Subramanian fell behind 5-0 early, but rallied to tie it at 5-all. However, the duo would fall, 8-6, and the Wolfpack would claim the doubles point with another win at the No. 3 doubles position.
The Hurricanes close their regular-season home schedule on Sunday, April 6, versus No. 28 Wake Forest at noon. Miami's sole senior, Subramanian, will be recognized for his contributions to the program prior to singles competition. Admission is free.
No. 27 Miami 4, No. 44 NC State 3
Singles
1. #5 Daniel Vallverdu (UM) def. #64 James McGee (ST), 4-6, 6-1, 6-4
2. Vivek Subramanian (UM) def. Nick Cavaday (ST), 6-2, 7-5
3. David Rosenfeld (UM) def. Jay Weinacker (ST), 6-4, 6-3
4. Carl Sundberg (UM) def. Derek Stephens (ST), 6-4, 4-6, 6-4
5. Christian Welte (ST) def. J.C. Whitner (UM), 6-1, 6-1
6. David Chermak (ST) def. Barnabas Carrega (UM), 6-2, 4-6, 6-1
Order of Finish: 5, 3, 6, 2, 1, 4*
Doubles
1. #35 Daniel Vallverdu/Carl Sundberg (UM) def. #9 Jay Weinacker/Nick Cavaday (ST), 8-3
2. James McGee/Christian Welte (ST) def. #36 David Rosenfeld/Vivek Subramanian (UM), 8-6
3. David Chermak/Derek Stephens (ST) def. Hector Nieto/J.C. Whitner (UM), 8-6
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 3*
