ATHENS, Ga. – Duke men's tennis freshmen Nick Stachowiak and Spencer Furman had their impressive rookie campaigns come to an end Thursday at the NCAA Doubles Championship as the duo dropped a 6-2, 6-4 decision to California's Filip Bergevi and Florian Lakat at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.
Stachowiak and Furman were ranked No. 20 in the latest Oracle/Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) poll while Bergevi and Lakat stood at No. 5.
In the opening set, the Bear pair set the tone early, turning a 2-1 lead into a 5-2 lead and holding on for the victory.
Duke bounced back in the second set and led 1-0 and 2-1 before Cal went on a hold-break-hold run to take a 4-2 advantage. Stachowiak and Furman cut the deficit to one game at 5-4, but Lakat served out for the match.
The Blue Devil pair finishes the season with a 19-5 record. Stachowiak turned in a 27-8 doubles record, tied for the fifth most wins by a Duke freshman in program history. His .771 winning percentage was also the ninth best by a Blue Devil rookie. Furman was right behind with a 22-7 doubles mark and his .758 winning percentage is the 10th highest by a freshman in program history.
Stachowiak and Furman helped guide the Blue Devils to a 16-10 mark in 2017 and a return trip to the NCAA Team Championship. Duke was ranked No. 35 in the final Oracle/ITA team ledger.
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