The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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MARCH 2015 ■ 63 "Objectively, you can say that we've made some positive changes. In that regard, there was some significance with the result." That isn't to say the process is complete, or anywhere close to it. Earnshaw is quick to note a change in team culture, "doesn't hap- pened overnight," because change is always hard. However, the team has been receptive to his ways, and he has seen improvements from the first day of practice. Now is the time to see if that translates to match situ- ations. "We've certainly got a lot of improve- ments that need to be made in a lot of ar- eas," he admitted. "We're really just trying to maximize our time and get them accus- tomed to the goals that we have for the pro- gram moving forward. We're trying to get it going in that direction as quickly as we possibly can. "As far as their ability to move and their strength, we're definitely a heck of a lot bet- ter in those areas physically." Several players are appearing higher in the lineup than ever before, so they are get- ting adjusted to that. Junior Joanna Nal- borska, who played at No. 1 singles in the first eight matches this spring, has had the steep learning curve of getting adjusted to life at the top of the lineup in college tennis' best league after transferring from Louisiana Tech. She responded with a 5-3 start and checked in at No. 84 in the national rankings as of Feb. 22. The team has also benefitted from the im- provements made by sophomore Liza Field- send, who played toward the bottom of the six single spots last year, and the leadership of senior Elisha Hande, who tied Nalborska with a team-best singles record of 5-3. Both have also recorded a win over a nationally ranked opponent. "Right now, I think we have seven teams in the ACC who are in the nation's top 25," Earnshaw said. "The biggest thing is not to just take it one match at a time, but realisti- cally, try to take it one practice at a time. "We just have to be as competitive as we can possibly be. We need to make it as difficult for our opponents as possible and try to make it easy for ourselves. Making it easy occurs on the practice courts. If we can do that and be in matches, you never really know what can happen sometimes. "It's about just being resilient and trying to give yourself the best chance possible. You can't do that without fighting, so we've got to fight a lot more, particularly on game day." ■ Noting The Pack • The team features three seniors, two juniors, a pair of sophomores and three freshmen, and the group hails from a variety of backgrounds. Two in- ternational players call England home, while another pair is from Australia. Others come from Ecuador and Poland, while the Americans' roots are spread across the country — two are natives of North Carolina, with one each from Texas and Florida. • When new mentor Simon Earnshaw was the head coach at Armstrong Atlantic State University, the women's team won six Division II crowns and finished first or second in both the conference regular season and postseason tournament every year from 2000-14. During that span, the men's team captured 10 regular-season conference titles, nine Peach Belt tournaments and a trio of NCAA championships, while the team's combined dual record was 747-118 (.864). He is a four-time ITA National Women's Coach of the Year and piloted his squads to 16 Final Four appearances. ■ By The Numbers 9 National titles won by head coach Simon Earnshaw at his last job at Armstrong Atlantic State Univer- sity in Savannah, Ga., where he coached the men's and women's teams. 21 Is the national ranking by TennisRecruiting.net of the group NCSU inked during the early sign- ing period. That would stand as the highest-ranked class ever brought in by the program, led by No. 15 overall recruit Bianca Moldova. Key Players To Watch Junior Joanna Nalborska The transfer from Louisiana Tech, where she was the 2013 Western Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year, has settled in at the top of the lineup with her new team. The native of Warsaw, Poland, was one of the top prep players in her homeland and had an overall singles record of 12-8 through Feb. 26 and was 5-3 at No. 1 singles in dual matches this spring and also tied for the team lead with 11 doubles victories. Sophomore Liza Fieldsend The Texan had a promising debut campaign last season — she went 16-11 in doubles with a team-best 11 spring wins, while she also played in the fourth-most singles matches (27). She has been even better this year, despite moving up from No. 4 and No. 5 singles to the No. 2 spot, where she has gone 4-3 this spring. Overall, she was 10-9 in singles play and 7-11 in doubles. Senior Elisha Hande Only two players on the squad have singles wins over nationally ranked foes this year — Nalborska and Hande. The Cheltenham, England, native beat No. 69 Linn Timmermann of Georgia State in early February and has started 5-3 in dual matches. She also stood tied for the team lead with 11 double victories — she and Nalborska were 5-2 this spring and were on their way to a win over the nation's No. 21 tandem when the bout was abandoned because UNC had already clinched the doubles point. ■ Key Matches To Watch • Vs. Charlotte, March 18 — The majority of the Pack's home dates came early in the season, when the squad opened with 10 of its first 11 duals in Raleigh, so this is one of the few late-season contests at home. It will also be the last non-conference date of the season before 10 straight ACC matches close the slate. • Vs. Boston College and Pittsburgh, April 3-4 — It is a rare occurrence when the Pack plays on back-to-back days, but the Easter holiday forces that to happen on this weekend. Head coach Simon Earnshaw thinks both squads will provide a good litmus test for the Wolfpack. He wouldn't reveal his goals for the team, but said both would be crucial matches in the squad's quest to meet expectations in conference play. • ACC Championship, April 23-26 — The confer - ence tournament will once again be held at the Cary Tennis Park, just outside of Raleigh. The ACC is college tennis' best league, and Earnshaw hopes his team is in a competitive position, where they can threaten to advance.