The Wolfpacker

Jan.-Feb. 2020

The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports

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74 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY MATT CARTER L ast year NC State women's tennis head coach Simon Earnshaw saw his program soar to new heights: • A No. 9 ranking nationally, highest in school history and part of four straight weeks in the top 10. The Wolfpack finished the year at No. 11, its best final rating after making the Sweet 16 for the first time. • Eleven wins against ACC teams while finishing tied for third in the tough confer- ence. NCSU's previously had a high of seven league victories. NC State's 24 over- all wins in 2019 topped the prior best of 19. • Its combined singles and doubles wins total of 273 marked the most in program history. • Then-junior Anna Rogers and then- freshman Alana Smith were NC State's first-ever All-Americans. Rogers did so in both singles and doubles, with Smith as her partner in the latter. Rogers would finish the campaign ranked No. 13 nationally in singles after reaching as high as No. 8, a new program best. All of that justifiably made Earnshaw the ACC Coach of the Year. The sixth-year head coach credited having a roster full of veterans in his program for reaching the breakthrough moment. Senior Anna Rogers became NC State's first-ever singles All-American last season and finished the year ranked No. 13 nationally. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE MEDIA RELATIONS WOMEN'S TENNIS PREVIEW ■ Key Matches • Vs. South Carolina, Jan. 18 — An early season home test for the Wolfpack. The Gamecocks reached the Elite Eight a year ago. South Carolina had two singles players ranked in the top 30 of the final fall ITA rankings. • At UNC, April 10 — The Heels made the Final Four in women's tennis a year ago and feature a powerful lineup with three players ranked in the top eight nationally in singles and two doubles tandems rated in the top six. • ACC Championships in Rome, Ga., April 15-19 — The ACC is traditionally loaded in women's ten - nis. Duke and UNC made it to the NCAA semifinals in 2019, while Florida State, Georgia Tech, Miami, Syracuse, Virginia and Wake Forest all made it to the second round. Boston College also earned a post - season invite. HIGH EXPECTATIONS After A Historic Season, NC State Seeks The Next Step

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