N.C. State Defeats Clemson 4-2

CLEMSON, SC – N.C. State’s Austin Powell defeated Gerardo Meza at number-three singles in clinching the match and leading the Wolfpack to a 4-2 victory over 15th-ranked Clemson in an Atlantic Coast Conference men’s tennis match at Clemson, SC Friday afternoon.N.C. State improves to 8-6 overall, and 2-1 in the ACC.   Clemson is now 13-3 overall, and 2-1 in league play.  N.C. State is ranked 45th nationally, while the Tigers are ranked 15th.The Wolfpack won the doubles point to take an early 1-0 lead.  N.C. State won the next two singles matches and took a 3-0 advantage.  The Wolfpack’s Dave Thomson defeated Dominique Maden 6-3, 6-3 at number-four singles.  Beck Bond of N.C. State won over Zachary Rigsby 6-4, 7-6 at number-six singles.From this point, the Tigers fought back, winning the top two singles contests.  Clemson’s Hunter Harrington won his 15th match of the season as he defeated Robbie Mudge 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 at number-two singles.  Harrington is 15-6 overall in singles and 11-3 in dual matches.The Tigers’ Yannick Maden won his 20th match of the year with his win over Thomas Weigel 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 at the top singles match.  Maden is now 20-4 in singles and 14-1 in dual match play.Powell clinched the match for N.C. State with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 win over Meza at number-three singles.  The number-five singles match was stopped when the Wolfpack clinched the match.  In this contest, Clemson’s Austin Ansari and Sean Weber were tied 6-6 in the third set and just began the tie breaker.“I give N.C. State a lot of credit in their win today,” said Clemson Head Coach Chuck McCuen.   From start to finish they fought hard the entire way.  They out-competed us today.“I thought that Yannick Maden did a good job, not just because he won, but in the fact that he stayed focused in his match and competed very hard.  He simply knows how to compete.“One thing that we have been trying to improve on this year is learning not to play so up and down.  As a team our level of play had ebbs and flows today, we wore our emotions on our sleeves today.  We have to continue to play consistently not only physically, but emotionally.“We have a quick turnaround now and we will play at Boston College Sunday.  We must be ready to play.Clemson will play at Boston College on Sunday evening at 5:00 p.m. in the Tigers’ next match.#45 N.C. State 4, #15 Clemson 2Doubles1. #11 Y.Maden/D. Maden (CU) vs. Thomson/Weber (NCS) DNF2. Weigel/Mudge (NCS) d. Rigsby/Ansari (CU) 9-73. Powell/Bond (NCS) d. Harrington/Meza (CU) 8-1Order of Finish:  3, 2Singles1. #41 Yannick Maden (CU) d. Thomas Weigel (NCS) 6-4, 3-6, 6-22. Hunter Harrington (CU) d. Robbie Mudge (NCS) 6-3, 2-6, 6-43. Austin Powell (NCS) d. Gerardo Meza (CU) 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 4. Dave Thomson (NCS) d. Dominique Maden (CU) 6-3, 6-35. Austin Ansari (CU) vs. Sean Weber (NCS) DNF6. Beck Bond (NCS) d. Zachary Rigsby (CU) 6-4, 7-6 (7-4)Order of Finish:  4, 6, 2, 1, 3