The drama seemed to be long over in yesterdayPis menPis tennis match when DukePis Pedro Escudero and MiamiPis Jose Lieberman went to a second-set tiebreak. The seventh-ranked Blue Devils (14-4) had already clinched their eighth-straight victory, having won the doubles point and the five other singles matches.
And when the 100th-ranked Escudero called LiebermanPis shot out late in the tiebreak, Duke appeared to have completed a perfect sweep of the unranked Hurricanes (8-8).
But then the referee overruled Escudero, who responded by voicing his displeasure in Spanish. The official proceeded to award the next point to Lieberman, and EscuderoPis protests grew louder. Before another ball could be served, the junior had defaulted the match for an unsportsmanlike conduct violation, leaving the final team score 6-1 in DukePis favor.
Pedro lost his temper,<= said coach Jay Lapidus. It happens sometimes. IPim going to have to talk to him about it later.<=
The No. 3 singles match was easily the closest of the afternoon, as all of EscuderoPis teammates won in straight sets. MiamiPis best chance to get on the board before his outburst came in doubles. With Escudero and Doug Root getting the day off at the No. 2 spot, Ted Rueger and Porter Jones stepped in at the third slot. They lost to Tank El Bassouni and Johan Lindquist 8-4, which Lapidus attributed to a lack of match experience.
Dmitry Muzyka and Jordan Wile, ranked 32nd in the country, cruised to a 8-0 victory at No. 1 doubles, leaving the point to be decided at the second slot. Lieberman and Ralph Hilt looked to have it in hand when they built a 7-4 lead over Ramsey Smith and Andres Pedroso. After the Blue Devil tandem won the next game on serve, Lieberman and Hilt jumped ahead 40-15.
But Smith used a strong return of serve to fight off one match point, then a well-placed lob to push the score to deuce. Duke won that game and the next three for a come-from-behind 9-7 victory.
Their last match was like that too,<= Lapidus said of Smith and Pedroso. Their last couple of matches theyPive come out a little flat. IPid like them to play better early in the match, not just when it comes to crunch time.<=
The coach also shuffled his singles lineup, flipping Muzyka and Escudero in the first and third spots. The 81st-ranked Muzyka continued his strong senior campaign with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Arpad Odry at the No. 1 slot. But the most impressive performance of the afternoon might have come from Smith. The 39th-ranked sophomore, who has been rounding into form as of late after missing almost three months with a broken ankle, quickly dispatched Lindquist, 6-0, 6-2, at No. 4 singles.
Lapidus had a hard time picking one singles performance for praise.
We played a good match,<= he said. In singles play, this match was one of our best efforts.<=
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