Lapidus leads tennis team toward tournament play

After cruising to a 21-3 record on the year, the men's tennis team still has a lot left to accomplish.

Sure, Duke is riding a 13-match winning streak heading into the NCAA tournament after another undefeated ACC season and a fourth straight conference tournament crown.

With their national ranking at No. 5, things are looking up for the Blue Devils. However, the season is not yet over; a national championship is in sight, and coach Jay Lapidus knows his team still has a few things to work on.

For starters, the doubles pairings have not been flawless the past few weeks. Although Phillip King and Ramsey Smith were perfect on the year, the rest of the Blue Devils have had a few problems winning the doubles point. It was the only point they lost in the ACC tournament, and in their three losses they have failed to win the majority of doubles.

"We still have to keep working on doubles," Lapidus said. "We may change around the lineups, I don't know, but Phillip and Ramsey will play together."

On the flip side of the coin, the Blue Devils' singles play has been more than stellar. King, who dropped a few matches in the middle of the season, seems to have regained form, and the rest of the team has been playing almost perfect as of late. Behind the senior leadership of Smith, Marko Cerenko and Andres Pedroso, the Blue Devils are primed for another run at the national title.

"You need the horses to win the race, and I think we may have the horses this year to do it," said Lapidus. "You also need a little bit of luck to win the whole thing. Hopefully this is going to be the year we have some luck."