After No. 25 Tennessee (5-2) and No. 8 Duke (5-1) split a slate of six singles contests, the outcome of the match rested on the doubles point.
In the end, the Blue Devils took all three doubles matches to earn the decisive point and claim a 4-3 victory over the Volunteers Sunday at the Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center.
Duke jumped up out to early breaks in each of the three doubles matches to calm the nerves of head coach Jay Lapidus.
"I think coach was really nervous but he didn't want to make us nervous," junior Phillip King said. "He told us to go out there and fight hard."
Michael Yani and King were engaged in a tight battle with Tennessee's Simon Rea and Mark Henderson before the team of Blue Devils pulled out a break in the fifth game of the match. The Tennessee pair became frustrated with their play and the experienced Duke team held strong and won 8-4.
Both Duke players came up with a number of impressive shots, showing quickness at the net; yet at times the team was plagued by unforced errors.
"The guys were good," King said. "We just had to make sure we stayed under control and played solid. It was close and there was
Ryan Heinberg and Ludovic Walter secured the victory for the Blue Devils when they completed a 8-3 win over Rawl Martin and Vincent Perna. The Duke players got out to an early break and controlled their Volunteer opponents through much of the match.
Jonathan Stokke and Jason Zimmerman also won their doubles match, but after Duke had secured the team victory. The Blue Devils broke in the first game of the match to take an early lead. The Tennessee team then leveled the score midway through the set, only to see the Blue Devils break back in the penultimate game and serve for a 9-7 victory.
"I thought the guys did a great job regrouping in the doubles, and our doubles is really good this year," Lapidus said. "Last year we struggled in doubles and this year I have a lot of confidence."
While Duke pulled through in the doubles when the match was on the line, the Blue Devils struggled in singles play.
"A couple of guys in singles just didn't play well today," Lapidus said. "I thought we were going to get through it a little easier. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong."
In the No. 1 position, King defeated Rea by a score of 6-4, 6-2.
"I didn't play that well," King said. "I came up with a few shots on big points but I could have definitely played a lot better."
Next, Perna defeated Stokke at No. 4, 6-3, 7-5, Dietrich knocked off Yani at No. 2, 6-3, 6-3 and Shults won the sixth slot over Martin 6-2, 6-3.
At the third flight, Walter played a tight two set match against Wade Orr and pulled out a 6-4, 6-4 victory to give the Blue Devils a 3-2 match advantage.
The attention of the tennis center then shifted to the No. 5 match between Duke's Stephen Amritraj and Tennessee's Mark Henderson.
Henderson took the first set by a score of 6-4. With the lead in the second set tiebreaker Amritraj twisted his knee. He attempted to get up but again feel to the court.
After some attention from the trainer, Amritraj tried to continue but he was unable to put enough weight on the injured leg to compete, and was forced to retire. Amritraj, coming off an ACL tear last year, will see a orthopedist this morning but is doubtful for this weekend's trip to the ITA National Indoor Championships in Louisville, Ken.
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