Duke moves to Sweet 16

Duke stood in an all too familiar place, locked in a battle with its archrival North Carolina for the second time in just over a month.

The Blue Devils prevailed again—and this time, they didn’t even need any heroics from Reid Carleton. Duke, the No. 16 seed, beat the Tar Heels 4-1 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament Saturday to gain its first berth in the Sweet 16 since 2006.

The Blue Devils got to the second round by dismantling VCU 4-0 Friday. Duke won the doubles point easily and got victories at the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 4 singles spots.

“Very clean efficient match,” head coach Ramsey Smith said. “A perfect first match of the tournament.”

North Carolina provided a tougher test. Winning the doubles point against the formidable Tar Heels proved to be the most important factor in the match.

“I think the doubles was the key today for sure,” Smith said. “They are extremely strong in doubles and the last time we lost the doubles point we barely squeaked out four singles matches. So we knew if we could win the doubles point we would be in [a] good position. It was one of our better doubles points and all three teams played exceptionally well.”

In the doubles, Henrique Cunha and Reid Carleton—the top-ranked pair in the country—won 8-4 while Torsten Wietoska and Dylan Arnould won 8-5, giving the Blue Devils the early lead. However, singles play was a completely different story with Duke down a set in four of its first six matches.

Close match experience and mental toughness, according to Smith, helped the Blue Devils to ultimately prevail.

“We really learned from a lot of matches earlier in the year,” Smith said. “And we won a lot of those close matches so we built up confidence throughout the year. We have battled adversity so when we get into tough situations like losing four first sets we do an excellent job of staying composed and really buckling down for the first couple games of the second set.”

In the only two straight-set matches, freshman Luke Marchese beat Andrew Crone 6-3, 6-2 at the six No. 6 spot while Arnould lost in straight sets to Stefan Hardy, 7-5, 7-6 (3), at the No. 3 spot, making the match 2-1 midway through the day.

The other four matches went into third sets with sophomore Wietoska earning the third point with a 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (3) victory against Brennan Boyajian, setting the stage for freshman phenom Cunha. The second-ranked player in the country and reigning ACC Player and Freshman of the Year, Cunha came back to win in three sets—6-7 (3), 6-3, 6-4—against No. 43 Clay Donato to clinch the decisive point.

“I started playing really well, break up in the first set,” Cunha said. “I kind of lost my concentration a little bit and he took the first set…. I knew if I kept my level up and keep playing really strong and I could break him and I break through in the third set.”

Coach Ramsey Smith lauded Marchese and Cunha’s effort, not only in the match against the Tar Heels, but throughout the whole season.

“Henry [Cunha] and Luke [Marchese] have been great for us all season long, not just end of the season,” Smith said. [They] give us a lot of confidence going into the matches, pretty secure at those two spots. Certainly there are no guarantees, but they have extraordinary records at their positions. Particularly at the number one spot... [Cunha] has been extraordinary this year and [it was] really fitting [for him] to clinch the match this year in a really good player in Donato.”

Next up in the Sweet 16 Friday is Duke’s ACC rival and the No. 1 ranked team in the nation Virginia. After only losing one match all season, the Cavaliers cruised in the first two rounds, beating both Navy and Wake Forest 4-0. Duke has had a tough going with Virginia this season, losing in a 4-3 heartbreaker earlier in the year and suffering a 4-2 loss in the ACC tournament last month.

Cunha is excited and likes the Blue Devils’ chances against their formidable rival.

“We have a great chance,” he said. “They know it is going to be a hard game for both sides. I am excited [to play] them.”