The men's tennis team split a pair of important matches over the weekend, beating Notre Dame 4-2, but losing to No. 2 Illinois 6-1 in Champaign, Ill.
In the match against the Fighting Irish (2-5), played Sunday in South Bend, Ind., the No. 8 Blue Devils (4-1) swept the double point to take an early 1-0 lead.
Playing at the first flight, No. 16 Jonathan Stokke and Jason Zimmerman took out Matthew Scott and Brent D'Amico 8-4.
At No. 2 Phillip King and Peter Shults won 8-3, and Duke's third team of Ryan Heinberg and Ludovic Walter won 8-6.
In singles, King won the first flight over Notre Dame's Luis Haddock 6-3, 6-1.
The Irish then came back, leveling the match at two as Heinberg and senior Yorke Allen fell.
However, the freshman tandem of Walter and Stokke, playing No. 2 and 3, respectively, finished off their singles opponents to clinch a 4-2 win for Duke.
In Friday's match against the Fighting Illini (4-0), the Blue Devils started by losing doubles 2-1, thus dropping the point.
King and senior Michael Yani won at first doubles, but Walter and Stokke fell at No. 2 and Stephen Amritraj and Shults lost at the third flight, dropping Duke into a 1-0 hole.
At first singles King then crushed national No. 2 Amer Delic, 6-1, 6-1 to level the match. However, Duke lost the next singles matches.
Four of five Blue Devils fell in straight sets, with Yani the only one losing in three. The Blue Devils are in action again this weekend at home against Tennessee.
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