In its final regular season contest, the ninth-ranked men's tennis team (17-5) convincingly defeated No. 27 Miami (12-7) in a nonconference matchup Sunday, winning all but one singles position in a 6-1 victory.
The Blue Devils began the afternoon on a positive note, as they built a 1-0 lead in doubles play.
The fourth-ranked duo of Philip King and Michael Yani--who advanced to the semifinals of last year's NCAA Championships--improved their 2003 season record to 17-2 with an 8-3 victory over No. 29 Andrew Golub and Colin Purcell; while No. 41 Jason Zimmermann and Ludovic Walter handled the Hurricane's Luis Manrique and Todd Widom 8-4.
Miami had to default the third slot because of injuries to several players.
"We're playing very well in doubles," Duke head coach Jay Lapidus said. "I think we've got three really solid teams."
Duke's momentum carried over into the singles matches, which featured a showdown at the first slot between the Blue Devil's No. 30 Phillip King and the Hurricane's No. 22 Todd Widom.
Widom, who was recently named to the prestigious ITA All-Star team, upset the Duke junior in the second round of the NCAA tournament last year. King's resume is impressive as well, however, as he has been named an All-American for two consecutive seasons.
Coming into Sunday's contest, King had lost four of his last six singles matches--including a tiring three-set thriller against North Carolina's 85th-ranked Nicholas Monroe Wednesday--all while trying to overcome an ankle sprain suffered earlier this season.
Widom began the match on fire, taking the first set 6-2 and building a 3-0 lead in the second.
However, King was able to keep his composure and rebounded to take the second set 6-4. He closed out the match with a 6-2 triumph in the deciding set to improve his overall record to 12-7.
"Phillip played really well," Lapidus said. "For him to come back and win the match was big because he had been struggling recently. I think he's back to 100 percent."
If King is back to tip-top shape, the competition should be leary--King began the season with a string of wins over the nation's top-ranked players.
Duke's two other ranked singles players, No. 34 Yani and No. 60 Walter, had more routine wins at the second and third slots, respectively.
Yani helped to spoil senior day for Golub, Miami's lone fourth-year player, with a 6-4, 6-4 win, while Walter defeated Manrique 6-4, 6-2.
"I didn't play well because I wasn't used to the heat, but I fought well," Walter said. "I think my forehand is getting better again."
Walter has now won nine consecutive singles matches for the Blue Devils, a streak that is especially impressive for a freshman.
The Blue Devils also collected a victory at the fifth singles slot from freshman Jonathan Stokke. The Chapel Hill native breezed by Zachary Hood 6-2, 6-0.
Duke's only loss of the day came at fourth singles, as sophomore Jason Zimmerman fell to Hurricane freshman Purcell 6-1, 7-5.
With Sunday's victory, Duke heads into next weekend's ACC tournament with a 10-match winning streak, although five of those contests have been won by a narrow 4-3 margin.
"I think we're playing really well going into the ACC's," Lapidus said. "This was a good match for us. Miami was a little depleted with their injuries, but to beat the 27th-ranked team 6-1 was still a big plus."
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