The 10th-ranked men's tennis team took care of the N.C. State Wolfpack with few problems on Tuesday afternoon.
Duke (11-4, 3-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference), the team to beat in the ACC, dominated the Wolfpack, 7-0, to pick up its third conference win of the season.
The Blue Devils instituted a change into their doubles lineup to begin the contest, splitting their ninth-ranked tandem of seniors Rob Chess and Peter Ayers. Head coach Jay Lapidus and the team felt that something needed to be changed. after suffering from inconsistency at the third doubles slot earlier this season. The alternate doubles lineup features freshman Dmitry Muzyka and junior Sven Koehler at the No. 1 slot, followed by Chess and junior Adam Gusky at No. 2, while Ayers and freshman Jordan Wile fill in at No. 3.
"Doubles didn't look real good at one and three-we played really lethargic," Lapidus said. "We won all three of them but we just didn't look that sharp."
At No. 2 doubles, however, Chess and Gusky picked up an easy 8-1 victory to complete the doubles sweep.
The Blue Devils picked up their intensity in the singles matches, clearing away the Wolfpack with ease. No Duke player dropped a set all afternoon.
"I wasn't real pleased with doubles, but in singles we came out and took care of business," Lapidus said.
N.C. State has struggled through much of its season, as it only picked up its first league victory this past weekend from Maryland.
"They're just a little bit down this year," Lapidus said. "They had a new coach come in-he's doing a good job but he wasn't left with a whole lot of talent. They've had a couple of guys who have left the team so they're a little bit bare this year. They really weren't that strong."
Even though Duke has dominated ACC play for the past few years, it still copes with the challenge of getting psyched about playing the lower-echelon teams in the conference.
"We try to talk about that," Lapidus said. "We try to get them to play well and play hard, no matter who they're playing against, but I guess that's easier said than done.
"It's difficult, though, especially when you play a lot of matches and it's a match that you know is not going to be as difficult. We've had a tough schedule, but it's also tough when we have a little bit of a break and we ease up and let down a little bit. It's understandable but we don't want to get into bad habits."
Despite its change in the doubles lineup on Tuesday, Duke plans to return to its normal lineup-with Chess and Ayers at No. 1-when the Blue Devils take on South Alabama Thursday at 2:30 p.m. at the Duke Tennis Stadium.
"The reason I'm [experimenting with the doubles] is I'm trying to keep the options open," Lapidus said. "I think we'll go back to our original doubles against South Alabama. I feel like Rob and Pete are playing really, really well. Dmitry and Sven are playing well. We're starting to play better at third doubles. I think, based on the Kentucky match, we're looking pretty good in doubles. So we'll go back to that for South Alabama."
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