The match against Virginia (12-4, 5-2 ACC) took place on a warm Friday afternoon in Coral Gables, and the visiting Cavaliers did not look ready for the heat.
Miami jumped into the match firing on all cylinders, as it blew past Virginia on all three courts in doubles. The No. 53 pair of junior Isabella Pfennig and redshirt sophomore Alexa Noel dominated the No. 11 Cavalier pair 6-0 on Court 2. In the blink of an eye, junior Audrey Boch-Collins and freshman Mia Mack clinched the doubles point, 6-1, on Court 3.
The two teams elected to keep playing, which lead to Miami claiming a top-10 victory on court 1. Fifth-year senior Daevenia Achong and fourth-year junior Maya Tahan won 6-3 over the No. 9 pair in the country to give the ‘Canes a clean sweep.
Single play was as decisive as doubles. The ‘Canes delivered three sucker punches to the Cavaliers before they could even hope to get back in the match. On Court 2, No. 118 Achong pulled off a top-50 win, 6-2, 6-1, on Court 2. Next, No. 116 Pfennig beat the No. 89 Cavalier 6-2, 6-1 on Court 3 to put Miami on the brink of victory. No. 11 Noel delivered the knockout blow, 6-1, 6-3, to give the ‘Canes a guaranteed victory.
The coaches continued play, with all third sets turning into 10-point tiebreaks. This rule came to play immediately as Tahan forced a third set on Court 6. After being down 4-6, she flipped the score 6-4 to push the match to the tiebreak. Once there, she narrowly pushed past her opponent 10-8 to increase the margin to five.
Virginia got a point back as Boch-Collins fell on Court 4, 5-7, 5-7. However, the ‘Canes had the last laugh as Mack would win a third set of her own, 7-6 (7-5), 3-6, 1-0 (10-6).
With the final score being 6-1, the ‘Canes achieved a dominant top-10 victory to back up the victory over No. 5 NC State two weeks prior.
Two days later, the ‘Canes dominated even more. In a feat rarely achieved a top-100 team, Miami completely shoutout the Virginia Tech Hokies (10-8, 1-7 ACC) across all matches. The ‘Canes would not drop a single set on the day, finishing with a perfect 7-0 victory.
In doubles, Achong and Tahan flew past their opponents 6-1 on Court 1. Boch-Collins and Mack were only moments behind, winning 6-2 on Court 3. With the point secured, doubles play was called with Noel and Pfennig winning on Court 2, 5-3.
In singles play, it was pure consistency from the entire team. Tahan won first, 6-4, 6-0, on Court 6. Achong struck next, 6-0, 6-3, on Court 2, followed by Pfennig on Court 3, 6-0, 6-4. At this point, the match was already won, but the ‘Canes wouldn’t let the Hokies off easy. Mack finished next, 6-2, 6-2, on Court 5, and Noel continued her hot streak, winning 6-4, 6-4 on Court 1. Boch-Collins cemented the perfect afternoon with a comfortable 6-1, 6-4 victory on Court 4 to deliver one of the most dominant wins of the season.
The ‘Canes have been red hot for the last few weeks, winning four matches in the top 25, with their only loss coming from the second-best team in the country. They look to continue this dominant form as they travel to Durham to face the Duke Blue Devils on Friday, March 31.