March 16, 2011

UNCG (8-3) at Charlotte (3-10), March 17, 2:30 p.m., Halton-Wagner Tennis Complex, Charlotte, N.C.

Storylines

• Winner of four straight matches, UNCG steps out of conference when it heads down to Charlotte to take on the 49ers on Thursday at 2:30 p.m.

• The Spartans topped Chattanooga on Saturday, 6-1, to move to 3-0 in the Southern Conference. After dropping the doubles point for the first time since Feb. 26, UNCG swept all six singles matches for the emphatic win.

• Since mixing up the doubles lineups against Wofford on March 5, UNCG had won the doubles point in three straight matches heading into the Chattanooga match. The Spartans were just 5-16 in doubles play through their first seven matches, but are 8-4 since the switch.

• UNCG downed Charlotte 7-0 last season, sweeping through singles and doubles play on Feb. 21 in Greensboro.

• UNCG has gotten impressive performances from the bottom half of the singles lineup this season, as the Spartans are 10-1 at No. 6, 8-3 at No. 5 and 7-4 at No. 6.

• Youth has served the Spartans well so far this season. Three freshmen are regular contributors in singles play, and the three lead the squad in dual wins. True freshman Ahmet Sarioglu is off to an 9-2 dual start and leads the team lead with 16 overall wins (16-6). Zach Reece, a redshirt freshman, is 7-1 on the season in dual play and 15-5 overall on the year. Chanon Varapongsittikul, another true freshman, is 8-3 in dual play and 15-7 overall on the season.

• Orcun Seyrek, UNCG's No. 1 singles player, is 6-5 in duals but 14-7 overall. Yaroslav Litus is 7-4 in duals and 13-7 overall and has won four straight. Timion Meijs reached double digits in wins Saturday, moving to 10-8 overall on the season and 6-5 in dual action.

• Sarioglu and Varapongstittikul are 5-2 as a doubles pairing and 3-1 in dual play. The duo saw its five-match winning streak snapped at Chattanooga. Litus and Jacob Wright are 10-5 overall as a doubles team and 5-4 in duals.

• Charlotte is 3-10 on the year and has lost its last seven heading into Wednesday night's contest at Davidson. The 49ers have not won since Feb. 13, when they took both ends of a home doubleheader over Division II Johnson C. Smith and NAIA Milligan, both by 7-0 scores. Charlotte's other win came against DII Winston-Salem State.

• In their last outing, the 49ers fell 4-3 to Presbyterian on Sunday. Charlotte picked up a pair of solid wins in doubles play, getting an 8-3 win at No. 1 and an 8-0 win at No. 2, but saw only Michael Anders (No. 2) and Moritz Bernhoerster (No. 4) win in singles play.

• Entering play Wednesday, Charlotte freshman Alex Weber is the only 49er with a winning record in singles play, although junior Charles Martin-Lecamp and freshman Victor Theorin are both 6-7 in dual matches. Weber has played just two dual matches, both at No. 6 singles. Charlotte has found its most success at No. 5 singles (7-6), where Theorin has a 3-2 mark.

• Bernhoerster and Martin-Lecamp are a formidable duo in doubles play, as the tandem is 9-3 overall and a sterling 7-1 in dual play so far with four straight wins. The duo is 5-1 at No. 2 and 2-1 at No. 1. Theorin and Weber were 6-0 together in the fall slate, but have not played a dual match together.

• UNCG and Charlotte have two common opponents thus far, with the Spartans downing Wofford and UNC Asheville and the 49ers losing to both.

- UNCG -