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No. 19 South Carolina set to host Clemson in annual Palmetto Series match
Women's Tennis  . 

No. 19 South Carolina set to host Clemson in annual Palmetto Series match

Jan. 31, 2018

Clemson at No. 19 South Carolina

Match Info

Host: South Carolina

Date: Feb. 1, 2018

Start Time: 5:30 p.m. ET

Location: Columbia, S.C.

Venue: Carolina Tennis Center

COLUMBIA, S.C. — After defeating Clemson in the ITA Kick-Off championship match Saturday, No. 19 South Carolina women’s tennis (3-1) will welcome the Tigers back to Carolina Tennis Center for its annual in-state rivalry dual match.

South Carolina, which hosted ITA Kick-Off Weekend for the first time in program history, is coming off a 4-0 dual match victory over Oklahoma on Friday and a 4-1 win over the Tigers on Saturday that secured the program’s third trip to ITA Team Indoors and its first in the event’s current format, which began in 2009.

The Gamecocks own a three-match winning streak over the Tigers, including a 4-3 win in Columbia in 2016 and a 7-0 win at Clemson last season. Thursday marks the 54th meeting between the schools, and Clemson owns a slight 27-26 edge in the all-time series. South Carolina’s three consecutive wins over the Tigers is its longest winning streak since rattling off six straight from 1997 to 2002. The two teams have not played each other twice in the same season since 2004 when they met in February in Columbia and in May in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Clemson.

In the most recent matchup between the teams, the Gamecocks lost the doubles point, but won four straight singles matches in straight sets to defeat the Tigers, 4-1. Rachel Rohrabacher and Megan Davies were the first to finish, defeating Daniela Ruiz and Constanza Gorches, respectively. Mia Horvit took down Sydney Riley, 6-4, 6-4, while Ingrid Gamarra Martins kept her 2018 perfect singles record alive with a 7-5, 7-6(7-2) win over Tate Schroeder.

QUOTABLE

“The reality is that Clemson is a really, really good team and it’s going to be very, very hungry coming back [Thursday]. We won, 4-1, but that match was a lot closer than the score. We’re going to have to be ready coming after them again.” — Head Coach Kevin Epley

GAMECOCK NOTABLES

  • The Gamecocks are ranked at No. 19 in the nation by Oracle and the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), it was announced Jan. 31.
  • The Gamecocks are ranked at No. 17 by the USTA, it was announced Jan. 31. The team received 82 votes and is one of five SEC teams ranked in the Top 25.
  • South Carolina finished the 2016-17 season with a 20-9 overall record and a No. 15 ranking by Oracle/ITA. Epley was named the Wilson/ITA Carolina Region Coach of the Year for the team’s performance in 2017.
  • No. 43 Hadley Berg and No. 105 player Megan Davies hold the team’s best individual singles records at 14-1 and 17-4, respectively.
  • Junior Rachel Rohrabacher has come on strong this spring in singles with a 3-0 record at No. 6. Rohrabacher was used as a doubles specialist her first two seasons at South Carolina and posted records of 2-2 and 2-0 in limited singles play in 2016 and 2017.
  • Similar to Rohrabacher, Ingrid Gamarra Martins holds an undefeated record (3-0) in singles this spring, and is 2-0 in doubles when paired with Silvia Chinellato in dual match play.
  • The Gamecocks advanced to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 last season for the first time since 2009, marking their 23rd consecutive postseason appearance.
  • South Carolina sent two singles players, Mia Horvit and Ingrid Gamarra Martins, to the Round of 32 of the NCAA Singles Championship for the first time since 1983 when Laura Bernstein and Ellen Oxreider both moved on. Horvit went on to reach the round of 16, making her the first singles All-American for South Carolina since Bernstein in 1983.
  • Three freshmen joined the team this fall, including Nikolina Jovic, Kennedy Wicker and Megan Davies.
  • Ranked in singles: Hadley Berg (43), Megan Davies (105)
  • Ranked in doubles: Berg and Rachel Rohrabacher (33), Davies and Silvia Chinellato (48)
  • Berg is in sole possession of 10th on the career list for singles wins with 88, needing just one more to tie Gira Schofield for ninth on the list. She is looking to become just the fourth player in school history with 100 wins.
  • Berg’s 14-1 singles record this season has her at 88-28 overall for her career, with a winning percentage of 75.9 that ranks seventh in school history.
  • Epley is 13 wins away from reaching 100 at South Carolina and is 12 wins from 250 overall on his career.

SCOUTING CLEMSON

  • The Tigers (3-1) opened the 2018 dual match season with a 7-0 win over Charleston Southern and a 4-0 win over Appalachian State on Jan. 20. They defeated Southern California, 4-2, to advance to the ITA Kick-Off Weekend championship match against the Gamecocks.
  • Last season, the Tigers finished 13-12 and were 7-7 in the ACC. The team also received a bid to the 2017 NCAA Tournament for the 16th consecutive year and the 18th time in 20 years under head coach Nancy Harris.
  • Ranked in singles: Marie-Alexandre Leduc (20)
  • Last season, the Tigers advanced to the second round of the NCAA Team Tournament after a 4-2 win over Washington in the first round. Vanderbilt defeated the Tigers, 4-1, in the Round of 32.
  • The Clemson roster is composed of one freshman, three sophomores, three juniors and one senior.

UP NEXT FOR THE GAMECOCKS

Following the dual match against Clemson, the Gamecocks will head to the University of Wisconsin to compete in the 2018 ITA Team Indoor National Championships from Feb. 9-12. The appearance marks the first career appearance in the event for Epley. Fifteen other teams advanced to ITA Team Indoors, including UCLA, Duke, Pepperdine, Auburn, Texas, Ole Miss, Georgia Tech, Michigan, Texas Tech, Georgia, Wake Forest, Vanderbilt, North Carolina and Florida.

For updates, continue to check back with GamecocksOnline.com or follow the team on social media (@GamecockWTennis).

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