Over the past few years, the men's tennis team has been unstoppable in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Blue Devils (7-3) have not lost a conference matchup since 1992, and they aim to keep that tradition alive as the team starts play in the league today.
Duke hosts Maryland at 2:30 pm today at the Duke Tennis Stadium, but it expects a tougher match from Florida State on Saturday. Historically, the ACC has not been a powerhouse conference, but the league has gotten more competitive over the past few years.
"I think the conference has gotten a little bit stronger this year," Blue Devil head coach Jay Lapidus said. "There's probably three teams that could push us this year--Florida State, North Carolina and Clemson. We'll have some real competitive matches over the weekend."
The Seminoles, who recently vaulted up the national rankings to No. 22, should provide a rare conference challenge for the Blue Devils.
"Florida State is pretty good all the way through," Lapidus said. "They're solid. They're good in doubles, and they're good in singles. They're a team that gets really fired up to play."
Duke will also face another highly-ranked team--No. 23 Florida--this weekend. The Blue Devils defeated the Gators on Feb. 23 at the National Team Indoors.
"Florida is a very, very emotional team," Lapidus said. "In doubles, they scream like no other team. They're coached to make a lot of noise and scream and yell.
"Our guys will know that before they start off, but it's difficult to play them because they make so much noise on the court. It gets kind of crazy sometimes."
Duke's lineup is headed by two highly talented players, senior Chris Pressley and junior Rob Chess. Pressley, a two-time All-American, has just reentered the top 20 after being sidelined in the fall due to shoulder surgery. And Chess has climbed up the charts this year to No. 9, his highest ranking ever.
"Rob has just made so much improvement," Lapidus said. "He's just blossomed unbelievably. To be a top-10 player at this point, I think is incredible."
Chess also joins classmate Peter Ayers to form the No. 4 doubles team in the country. Senior Philippe Moggio and sophomore Adam Gusky pair up as the 21st-ranked team in the nation.
"I think our doubles play is real important," Lapidus said. "Our singles are so good that if we get the doubles point under our belt, I feel like we should at least be able to go three-all with anybody. When we win the doubles, we're in a really good position to go on and win the singles portion."
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