Duke's fifth-ranked women's tennis team spent its spring break in the sun like many other Duke students. But instead of relaxing, the Blue Devils were embroiled in three grueling matches against some of the top teams in the nation, coming away with a 2-1 record from the week.
Despite falling 6-2 to top-ranked Florida, the Blue Devils (12-3, 4-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference) reaffirmed their status in the upper echelons of college tennis by knocking off then-No. 5 Texas, 5-3, and ACC rival Florida State, 7-1.
"[The three matches] were good to see where we stand for the end of the season," assistant coach Jamie Ashworth said. "We saw some things that we need to work on, but we also found that we are a good team and we're close to our goal [of being good enough to win the national championship]. In May, when it really matters, we can win."
The matches over break also saw the return of Duke sophomore Vanessa Webb, who had been ranked No. 1 in the country before suffering a shoulder injury in October. She did not compete in singles play this week, but she teamed with freshman Karin Miller, who is currently ranked second nationally, in doubles. That tandem won all three of its matches, including a 8-0 win over Texas' Laura Berendt and Sandy Sureephong, who had been ranked eighth in the country before the match.
"Vanessa gives us a big lift, not just because she's No. 1, but because of her attitude of not losing," Ashworth said. "She's a great player and she will strengthen the team, but it's her attitude that we really missed. Now we believe even more that we can win [the national championship] with Vanessa's presence."
Doubles play proved to be the key to the win over the Longhorns on Mar. 16, as the teams completed singles play tied at three apiece. Miller defeated seventh-ranked Cristina Moros, 6-2, 6-4, at No. 1 singles, while seniors Karen O'Sullivan and Diana Spadea also prevailed for Duke at No. 4 and No. 6, respectively.
But then, O'Sullivan and Luanne Spadea teamed to upset the second-ranked doubles team in the nation, Moros and Farley Taylor, 8-6. That victory, combined with the Webb/Miller doubles win, handed the Blue Devils their third win over Texas in the last two years.
"The best thing at Texas was our doubles," Ashworth said. "We concentrated on attacking their second serves and closing in when they had to hit the big shots to beat us. In the past, we were more defensive, but we controlled the net this time."
The Blue Devils then flew half-way across the country to take on the Seminoles two days later in Tallahassee.
FSU entered the match undefeated in conference play, but Duke easily disposed of them, 7-1, to continue its 84-match winning streak in the ACC.
"Other teams don't realize the price they have to pay to beat Duke," Ashworth said. "In the ACC, we seem to get on top quickly and put them in a hole. They see themselves down 2-0, 3-0, 4-0, and they seem to think that what they have to do to win is impossible. That's why winning quickly pumps up our team and deflates the other team."
But the Gators turned that trick on Duke the next day in Gainesville, as Florida jumped out to a 5-1 lead in singles play to clinch the win before doubles even began.
The Gators, who feature four of the top 20 players in the nation, extended their winning streak to 48 matches, including last year's national championship win over Stanford.
Miller was the lone Blue Devil with success against Florida, as she beat ninth-ranked Dawn Buth, 7-5, 6-0, at No. 1 singles to avenge a loss in the title match of the Gator Fall Classic on Oct. 27. That 4-6, 7-6, 5-2 loss was one of only four losses this season for Miller to go with her 29 wins.
"I played very well [against Florida]," Miller said. "I was only concerned with my match, and I just tried to focus and it seemed to work. I had lost to her in the fall, so it was a bit of a revenge match for me."
Despite the predetermined outcome of the match after singles play, the teams decided to play two doubles matches. The nationally third-ranked tandem of Buth and Stephanie Nickitas beat the No. 5 pair of O'Sullivan and Luanne Spadea, but Webb and Miller shut down Amanda Basica and Traci Green, 8-6, to set the final score at 6-2.
"I told our players that the close matches were not so much won by Florida, but lost by us with mistakes at critical points," Ashworth said. "We need to do a better job of eliminating those mistakes. Florida put some pressure on us, and we played a little tentative on the big points.
"That's why we played doubles-to prove something to them and to show them that we won't roll over."
Duke returns to action on Tuesday, as it hosts Utah at 2 p.m. Miller is confident that despite the loss to the Gators, the Blue Devils will emerge from their southern swing with renewed confidence.
"Our confidence is up," she said. "We're not going to dwell on the loss. Overall, the trip was good for the team. We really need to be on to beat Florida, but Vanessa was not in singles. We really need her to beat them."
Brandon Ehrhart contributed to this story.
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