Rivalry match-ups are known for the emotion and high intensity involved. Just look at N.C. State’s Feb. 3 win over No. 3 North Carolina in men’s basketball. Following the conclusion of the 83-79 victory, hundreds of students flooded the court at the RBC Center.
While the players readily admit the game has emotional significance, coaches work to make sure the players know a win is a win, no matter the opponent, women’s tennis coach Hans Olsen said.
Tomorrow at 2:30 p.m., the No. 42 Wolfpack (12-8, 3-6 ACC) will take the court at the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Center against No. 11 North Carolina (18-7, 6-3 ACC).
“Our girls will definitely be ready to play,” Olsen said. “It’ll be a good match. UNC will be ready, and our players will be ready. We’re playing at home, so hopefully we’ll get a good crowd out.”
Olsen said the approach during practices leading up to a rivalry showdown can’t change too much if the team wants to be successful.
“Our girls want to win every time they play,” he said. “For them, the formula for winning is to stay with what’s working for them — to focus on their side of the net and not worry about the opponent too much. They’ve got to concentrate on doing the things that they do well. If they’ve got the right attitude and focus, then they’ll be ready to go.”
Freshman Berkeley Brock said a higher emotional investment in the match doesn’t make preparations harder; it makes players more eager to do well.
“It motivates you to work harder in the practices leading up to it,” she said. “We take every match pretty seriously. Everyone’s been working really hard in practice this week. [The coaches] treat it as really just another big match. All the ACC matches are big, and we prepare similarly for all of them.”
Freshmen Daria Petrovic and Brock have played much of the season in the first two singles slots. Petrovic is ranked No. 100 in the nation, according to Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings released April 3.
Brock said starting at State this season, she knew of the rivalry between the Pack and the Tar Heels, but she’s also learned a lot more about it.
“I knew about State – Carolina before I came here, and I knew it was a big rivalry,” she said. “But since I’ve been here, I’ve learned that it’s stronger than I thought it was.”
Junior Raleigh-native Julia Roach has been around the program for a few years, and being from Raleigh, she’s familiar with the rivalry.
“UNC is probably the team we want to beat the most this year, obviously, because they are our rivals,” she said. “We’ve all talked about being focused for this week in practice. We just need to work on what we need to — focus on the parts of our game we need to focus on. Preparations have been the same, but in our heads we all know it’s more.”
Roach said it’s important for the coaches to keep everyone balanced during practice.
“We don’t want to get into our heads,” Roach said. “We’re just preparing how we usually would.”
State will have its work cut out for sure. Four of Carolina’s singles players are ranked in the top 90, nationally: No. 6 Jenna Long, No. 62 Katrina Tsang, No. 64 Sanaz Marand and No. 90 Austin Smith.
Petrovic, State’s top singles player, has struggled in her past three matches — all losses, two of which were against ranked opponents.
Olsen said Petrovic’s recent three-match skid shouldn’t affect her preparations for the UNC match, where she will likely face No. 6 Long.
“She’s a real hard worker,” Olsen said. “She’s here early every day. She’ll be more determined in this next match because of a tough loss — a real close match on Saturday. She’s beaten very good players, and she’s lost to very good players.”
“For her, it’s a matter of coming to the courts every day with what she does well. If she can do that, she’ll have a chance to win every time she plays, and that’s really all you can ask for. Her attitude after a loss will be a little bit more determination. She doesn’t really get discouraged.”
Roach said tomorrow’s match is important because the season is nearing its end, But also because she knows the Pack can pull out a win.
“It’s huge,” she said. “Carolina is a beatable team this season. They’ve had some great wins, but they’ve lost some matches, too. It gives us confidence because we know they’re definitely beatable.”
