Feb. 19, 2009

COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 49 South Carolina has a chance to extend its win streak to five when it hosts NC State on Fri., Feb. 20, at 2 p.m. at the Sam Daniel Tennis Facility. It will be the first outdoor match of the season for the Gamecocks (7-1) and the fourth match in an eight-match home stand that continues through the first week of March.

South Carolina moved up two spots in the rankings from last week after running off wins in its last four matches, including a 4-3 decision over then-No. 55 Indiana. The Gamecocks are most recently coming off a 6-1 win over Elon in which Carolina swept all six singles matches. Senior Jaime Cuellar has been the most efficient Gamecock this season with a 5-0 record playing largely in the No. 3 singles position. He has lost just 21 games in his five completed matches, including a 7-5, 7-5 win over his counterpart at Indiana. Junior Ivan Cressoni is also perfect on the season with a 6-0 record, while junior Diego Cubas, ranked No. 97 in the country, has amassed a team-high 16 wins in 20 matches this season, including three straight wins in the top singles spot.

NC State (4-4) got a boost in their national ranking after a 4-3 win over then-No. 14 Michigan last Saturday in Nashville, Tenn. The Wolfpack is looking to rebound after a 3-4 loss at then-No. 28 Vanderbilt the next day. Senior Jay Weinacker, ranked No. 89 in the nation, won his No. 1 singles match against Vandy to tie the NC State record with his 95th career singles victory and improve to 10-4 for the season. No. 91 Christian Welte plays in the No. 2 singles spot for the Wolfpack. He has a 12-8 record on the season but just a 4-3 mark in dual-match play. NC State’s No. 2 doubles team of Weinacker and Jaime Pulgar is 7-0 on the season and ranks 38th in the country.

The Gamecocks hold a 20-6 edge in the all-time series between the two schools, although the Wolfpack claimed a 5-2 victory in the most recent meeting (Feb. 25, 2006, in Columbia). South Carolina is 16-2 against NC State in matches played in Columbia.