GREENWOOD, S.C.-Not many seniors can leave Duke such impressive legacies as four consecutive NCAA titles.
Yet the seniors on the men's tennis team have never lost an Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament match. That feat itself is special, but this year, the championship came with a little bit more emphasis.
The 10th-ranked Blue Devils bested archrival North Carolina, which is ranked No. 17, in the final round of the ACCs on Sunday, 4-1. Duke took out its first-round opponent, Georgia Tech, 4-1 on Friday, and slid past Florida State, 4-2 on Saturday to advance to the championship game at the Gatewood Country Club in Greenwood, S.C.
Duke had entered the tournament with a No. 3 seed, its lowest since 1991. The Blue Devils had uncharacteristically dropped two league matches, the latter a 4-3 decision to North Carolina on April 11. This time, they had something to prove.
"I think this championship feels the greatest of all just because we did struggle a little bit and a couple of people might've counted us out," said senior Rob Chess, who was named the tournament MVP. "We knew we had to play our toughest match of the year."
Duke started off the final match on the right note, capturing the doubles point from the Tar Heels. In the regular-season contest, UNC won the doubles point and took the momentum that came with it into singles play.
On Sunday, the Blue Devils used their own intensity and strong play to take the first point of the match.
"I was really pleased with our doubles," head coach Jay Lapidus said. "Our doubles has been up and down all year and to come through in a big match is absolutely exceptional.... I think doubles kind of broke their spirit a little bit."
Lapidus instituted a change in the doubles lineup for the ACC Tournament, although he had tried the different lineup sporadically throughout the season. The matchups worked to Duke's advantage in the rematch with Carolina.
Feeding off of a large, vocal crowd which had a strong Tar Heel showing, freshman Dmitry Muzyka and junior Sven Koehler slammed the Tar Heels' star doubles team, David Caldwell and Brint Morrow, 8-4, at No. 1 doubles.
"Most of my guys like the crowd against them a little bit because it motivates us to try and keep them quiet," Lapidus said. "We were hoping for a lot of Carolina people."
Senior Peter Ayers and freshman Jordan Wile soon clinched the doubles point at No. 3 doubles, but not before UNC's Paul Harsanyi and Robert Tedesco saved two match points at 7-4. Ayers held serve to take the match, 8-4.
"Duke played great," Tar Heel coach Sam Paul said. "I think [doubles] was important. They just took it to us; they played the lights out."
The intensity on both sides of the net was evident from the outset. Players from Carolina and Duke argued heatedly whenever an official overruled a call.
"Both teams came out really intense; I could feel it in the air," Chess said. "There was a sense of urgency with both teams."
Chess quickly won the second point for Duke at No. 1 singles, as he breezed past Caldwell, 6-2, 6-3. Muzyka followed suit with another straight-set victory at No. 2, but only after battling back from a 5-3 deficit in the first set. The freshman showed no mercy in the second set, defeating Tedesco, 7-6, 6-1.
Down 3-0, the Carolina contingency in Greenwood became more vocal, and UNC's Tripp Phillips picked up the Tar Heels' only point of the day by beating Ayers, 6-3, 6-4.
North Carolina was not able to stage any more comebacks than that match, however, as Duke held the lead in all the remaining matches. Junior Adam Gusky soon finished the seesaw battle at No. 5 with Harsanyi, clinching the victory, 6-1, 3-6, 6-1. Gusky raised his hands in triumph and was quickly surrounded by his teammates to celebrate their title.
"I've got to give them all the credit in the world," Paul said. "They outplayed us just about every spot."
Chess, Ayers and fellow senior Jordan Murray continued their reign of ACC titles and look to take their accomplishments to the national level, with the NCAA Tournament quickly approaching.
"I think it shows that we're capable of playing at a very, very high level," Lapidus said. "If we can get that doubles point I don't see many teams beating us. We're too solid throughout our lineup to be beaten four of six in singles."
Chess agreed that the tournament victory will help spur the Blue Devils on toward the NCAAs.
"I think [winning] this is going to help us a lot," he said. "We feel we pulled together and faced a little adversity in the last week or so. I think we're hitting stride now and I'm hoping that we're peaking going into the NCAAs."
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