Down 1-0 in a third-set tiebreak that would decide the match, Jackie Carleton went to serve but stopped before her toss, wincing in pain. The junior slammed her fist into her thigh and tried to serve again but stopped mid-motion. Finally, the chair umpire penalized Carleton a point for a time violation.
Four hours and 20 minutes into Duke’s match at Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center, Carleton cramped, and William & Mary’s Candice Fuchs took advantage.
The Tribe’s No. 3 singles player worked both sides of the court, forcing errors from Carleton, who struggled to chase down the shots. The junior, who had enjoyed a 5-2 lead in the third set, suddenly found herself down 6-1 in the tiebreak with everything on the line.
Carleton tried to fight off her cramps to make the final points competitive but was ultimately in too deep a hole. She hit a forehand winner and her opponent made a series of unforced errors, bringing the score to 6-4. Then Fuchs put a backhand past Carleton as she approached the net, forcing the Blue Devil to scramble to get her racquet on the ball. Her return landed wide of the court, giving Fuchs the decisive tiebreak, and William & Mary the 4-3 win Wednesday.
After the No. 5 Blue Devils (7-3) were shut out in their doubles matches, it was apparent they would need an impressive singles showing to to have a chance to defeat the 20th-ranked Tribe (7-1).
“We said that they had to be competitively great,” head coach Jamie Ashworth said of his team after the lackluster doubles performance. “We did a good job starting off the singles. We just couldn’t sustain it.”
Katie Blaszak responded to her coach’s request. Trailing 5-4 in the first set, the senior collected herself and won the next eight games to go up a set and take a 5-0 lead in the second. With Duke down 2-3 in the overall match, Blaszak won the set 6-1, never letting her opponent get close to clinching the final point.
“You lose, but you turn around, and you have to play, and get right back and get ready to play singles,” she said.
Although Carleton and Blaszak nearly pulled out the Blue Devil win, Duke appeared to be struggling most of the match.
“We just weren’t all there today,” senior Saras Arasu said.
Duke uncharacteristically dropped all three doubles matches before Arasu and Kristin Cargill gave the Blue Devils a 2-1 lead by defeating their singles opponents.
That was the only lead the team would have all evening, as Jennifer Zika never found a rhythm in her singles match. She dropped the first set 6-3 and subsequently lost the second 6-0 as some of her shots sailed wide and long.
Freshman Clelia Deltour, usually a solid performer, was next to fall. An attempted drop-shot, which fell into the net in the final game of the match, was indicative of her frustration as she lost 7-5, 6-3.
Deltour’s loss set the stage for Blaszak and Carleton to make a charge for a second dramatic, come-from-behind victory in two weeks. Duke rallied from an 0-3 deficit against Notre Dame Feb. 18.
“In the end, ultimately, they did outlast us,” said Arasu.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.