Two standout UNC student-athletes earned Player of the Week honors from the ACC Tuesday afternoon. Brian Cernoch of the men’s tennis team and Chris Gray of the men’s lacrosse team each took home the weekly awards.

Though it came in a losing effort against Columbia, Cernoch still gave an outstanding performance for the Tar Heels Saturday. Against the Lions’ Alex Kotzen, ranked No. 7 in the country in singles, Cernoch fought back from a loss in the first set to take the next two by identical 6-3 scores and claim the victory. It’s the third time this season Cernoch has defeated a top-10 opponent, though the other two came in doubles with partner Mac Kiger. This is the first time Cernoch has been named ACC Player of the Week. He and Kiger were named Doubles Team of the Week twice in February.

Gray scorched the nets all day long in a ranked showdown with No. 13 Johns Hopkins Sunday. Gray scored seven goals in the win over the Blue Jays, which is the second-highest single-game mark of his career. He added two assists on Sunday, and combined with his two goals and three assists against Brown on Wednesday, Gray tallied a total of 14 points during the two wins. This is the first time this season Gray has won Offensive Player of the Week honors, and the seventh time he has won it in his career.

Cernoch and the men’s tennis team will open ACC play this Friday at home against Virginia Tech, while Gray and the men’s lacrosse team will host another ranked opponent at Dorrance Field Saturday when No. 20 Denver visits.

 

Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications/Jeffrey A. Camarati

Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our biweekly newsletter.

Related Stories
‹
UNC Women's Lacrosse Ranked No. 1 in Preseason Polls
The defending national champions are still No. 1. The UNC women’s lacrosse team received the top spot in the Nike/USA Lacrosse and Inside Lacrosse preseason polls. Carolina is coming off an undefeated 2022 season which ended in a national championship. Picking up right where we left off. 📰 » https://t.co/3apzZtndHv pic.twitter.com/a4ZSYsBKCN — UNC Women's Lacrosse […]
UNC Lacrosse and Tennis Athletes Earn More Weekly Recognition
While the main focus of almost all Carolina fans was on basketball this past weekend, several other UNC programs continued to showcase outstanding performances. Three of those programs saw one of their student-athletes earn weekly recognition on both a conference and national level. More ACC honors for Brian Cernoch & Mac Kiger, whose huge doubles […]
Art's Angle: Women's World
This past weekend was about the young women who make Carolina great in so many ways, particularly on the fields and courts. On Friday, the tennis Tar Heels defeated N.C. State for the third time this season, and this one was tougher than beating the Wolfpack in the regular season and the ACC tournament semifinals. […]
UNC Men's Lacrosse Falters Late, Loses to Richmond in NCAA Tournament 1st Round
Richmond outscored UNC 11-5 in the second half of Saturday’s NCAA Tournament first-round matchup at Dorrance Field, leading the Spiders to a 13-10 upset win over the No. 8 overall seed Tar Heels. UNC’s season is over. Carolina led for the entire first half, jumping out to a 4-0 lead early in the second quarter […]
UNC Lacrosse: Women Earn No. 1 Overall Seed, Men No. 8 Seed in NCAA Tournament
It’s tournament time for the UNC men’s and women’s lacrosse teams. The NCAA Tournament brackets were revealed Sunday night, with the women earning the No. 1 overall seed in the field and the men earning the No. 8 overall seed. The women are the No. 1 overall seed for the third time in the last […]
Duke Throttles UNC Men's Lacrosse in ACC Tournament Semifinals
UNC fell into a huge hole early against No. 3 seed Duke in the ACC Tournament semifinals Friday night and never recovered, falling to the Blue Devils 14-7 in Charlotte. Duke went ahead within the opening minute and increased that lead to 2-0 less than a minute after that, setting the stage for what would […]
3 UNC Men's Lacrosse Players Earn All-ACC Honors; Joe Breschi Named ACC Coach of the Year
UNC men’s lacrosse head coach Joe Breschi was named the ACC Coach of the Year Tuesday afternoon, and three of his players earned All-ACC nods as well. All-ACC Honors 😤 pic.twitter.com/bmuz2Kl9GR — UNC Men's Lacrosse (@UNCMensLacrosse) April 29, 2025 This is the fourth ACC Coach of the Year win for Breschi, who also took home […]
UNC Men's Lacrosse Wins at No. 10 Syracuse, Clinches Share of ACC Regular-Season Title
UNC held off a furious rally from No. 10 Syracuse at the JMA Wireless Dome Saturday afternoon and beat the Orange 14-12 in the regular-season finale. Carolina’s win clinches a share of the ACC regular-season title, which is the program’s first since 2021 and 14th overall. HEELS WIN #GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/FcCrtY2rqV — UNC Men's […]
UNC Men's Lacrosse Falters Late, Loses to No. 9 Notre Dame
No. 9 Notre Dame closed Saturday’s game against No. 5 UNC with seven unanswered goals, turning a 6-5 deficit into a 12-6 win for the Fighting Irish at Dorrance Field. The Tar Heels started hot on the day, leading 4-0 after the first quarter and 4-1 at halftime. The Irish came on strong in the […]
6 UNC Lacrosse Players Named Tewaaraton Award Nominees
Six UNC men’s and women’s lacrosse players have been named as nominees for the Tewaaraton Award, given annually to the national player of the year. On the men’s side, Owen Duffy and Dominic Pietramala both earned nods, while Sam Forrest, Brooklyn Walker-Welch, Chloe Humphrey and Ashley Humphrey are nominated on the women’s side. 🗣️ Tewaaraton […]
›