No, it's not the Civil War revisited. But the men's tennis team will be competing in the Blue-Gray Classic next weekend in Montgomery, Ala. The No. 9 Blue Devils (4-2) will try to rebound from their disappointing 1-2 showing two weeks ago at the National Team Indoors in Louisville, Ky.
The Blue-Gray Classic features a host of nationally-ranked teams, ranging from No. 3 Mississippi State, to No. 21 North Carolina. With this packed field, the Blue Devils hope to gain some valuable wins that will prepare the team for the rest of the season and the NCAA tournament.
"It's a great tournament for us," head coach Jay Lapidus said. "The format is similar to the NCAAs. Hopefully we can play against some teams that are ahead of us [and improve our standing]."
The Blue Devils have consistently been ranked in the top 10 for the past few years, but they have never advanced past an NCAA quarterfinal. However, this year's team returns all of its players, headed by senior Chris Pressley.
Pressley sat out the fall season due to arthroscopic surgery on his shoulder, but is now fully recovered. Junior Rob Chess has also been a key factor in the Blue Devil lineup. He has not lost a match this spring and is ranked No. 13.
This year, Duke would like to improve upon its previous performances in the NCAAs. The competition at the Blue-Gray Classic will include some possible NCAA opponents.
"We're a pretty experienced team," Lapidus said. "We're not afraid of anybody."
One of Duke's big strengths has been its doubles play. Earlier this year, the Blue Devils defeated Mississippi's ninth-ranked doubles team.
"Our doubles have been really good so far," Lapidus said. We're quite strong when we're ready to play. We play well when we play eager and aware doubles."
A big impediment for the Blue Devils is the lack of adequate indoor practice facilities. The team is forced to practice in the Intramural Building when bad weather hits, which has been often of late.
"It was frustrating before the Indoors because it was hard to get practices in," Lapidus said. "We've just been able to get longer practices in and hit more balls recently."
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