The men's and women's tennis teams square off against some of the top names in collegiate tennis this weekend at the National Team Indoors.
The fifth-ranked women's team faces No. 22 Wisconsin, the home team of the women's tournament in Madison, Wis. The Blue Devils will have their hands full against the Badgers, since they will not only have to face a strong Wisconsin team, but a legion of Badger fans.
"[Wisconsin] is ranked higher than they've ever been," head coach Jody Hyden said. "They are tough to play at this tournament. It's always easy for any team to get up for big matches, especially when you're the underdog. They always give whoever they play here a tough match. We have to be ready for them."
Wisconsin boasts a team which plays most of the year indoors, so the Badgers' strengths lie in the hard-hitting style of indoor courts.
"They're a real hard-hitting team, because they play indoors all the time," Hyden said. "It's hard to have a lot of finesse when you play indoors all the time."
Although Hyden said that the team is not looking past its first match, the Blue Devils could have a second-round opponent of either No. 4 Georgia, who Duke defeated on Feb. 17, or No. 13 William & Mary.
"[The Georgia-William & Mary match] is going to be a battle," Hyden said. "But we're not looking past Wisconsin right now."
The 11th-ranked men's team is set to battle No. 6 Mississippi State in the first round in Louisville, Ky. The Blue Devils are coming off two strong wins, over Virginia Tech and Virginia Commonwealth.
"[Those wins] gave us some confidence, and more than that, it gives us match toughness," head coach Jay Lapidus said. "We've been in a tough situation and we pulled it out. I think the beginning of the season has turned out perfectly the first couple of matches. Hopefully we'll move on to the Indoors and continue."
Duke played its first match against the Hokies without senior Peter Ayers, who was ill that day, but is now healthy and ready for the Indoor field.
"I think they have three or four new guys in their lineup this year," Lapidus said. "I know they're supposed to be real good."
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