In a dual meet that featured solid performances throughout the Blue Devils' lineup, Duke finished a disappointing regular season with a 27-12 win at Princeton Friday.
After jumping out to a 13-0 lead with wins in its first three matches, Duke (4-11) never looked back.
The strong start included a major decision victory by Daniel Shvartsman at the 149-pound weight class and the only pin of the meet, recorded by freshman Addison Nuding in the 157-pound weight class.
Although the Blue Devils would drop their next two matches to bring the Tigers (5-10) to within seven points, Duke won the final four contested matches to win the meet.
Head coach Clar Anderson noted the positives of the win heading into next weekend's ACC Championships in Lexington, Va.
"It's tough to make up for a whole season, but it's great to finally be gelling," Anderson said. "I was pleased right up and down the line up. If we start to win a lot of the close ones, we may get to go to nationals."
Anderson highlighted the performances of sophomore Dan Fox, who replaced the injured Dan Tulley at the 184-pound weight class and Konrad Dudziak, who registered a major decision victory in the 197-pound weight class against a bigger opponent.
Despite their winless record in the ACC regular season, the Blue Devils have gotten five recent wins from freshmen and are hoping to parlay their recent improvements into postseason success.
"We all realize that we probably have to win to go to nationals," Anderson said. "This team is a very young team."
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