Duke Falls to Florida State in ACC Quarterfinals

Friday, April 23

Cary, N.C.

9:00 a.m.

Duke University

Florida State (Quarterfinals)

Women's Tennis Kicks Off Fall Season at Wake Forest

Duke Falls to Florida State in ACC Quarterfinals

4/23/2010 1:00:00 PM | Women's Tennis

By: Duke Sports Information

CARY, N.C. – Fourteenth-ranked Florida State claimed four straight singles victories to defeat No. 10 Duke, 4-2, in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament Friday morning in Cary, N.C. After sweeping Florida State 4-0 just six days ago in Durham, the Blue Devils' dropped singles matches at No. 1, 2, 4 and 6 in a tightly contested meeting.

Duke (19-7, 7-5 ACC) took the doubles point and started off singles play with a victory on court five before dropping four straight singles matches to the Seminoles. It marked the first time the Blue Devils failed to reach the semifinal round of the ACC Championships since the tournament's inception in 1986.

Florida State had the early advantage in doubles action as the 38th-ranked pair of junior Ellah Nze and senior Amanda Granson fell to the Seminoles' Lauren McCreless and Francesca Segarelli, 8-2. However, the Blue Devils answered with a victory on court three just minutes later, with the 81st-ranked tandem of senior Elizabeth Plotkin and junior Reka Zsilinszka claiming an 8-3 victory. Sophomore Monica Gorny and freshman Mary Clayton clinched the point for Duke, battling to an 8-4 win at No. 2 doubles.

Clayton led Duke off the courts in singles play, cruising to a 6-1, 6-1 victory at the No 5 spot. With the win, Clayton improved to 19-6 this on the season, and gave the Blue Devils a 2-0 advantage.

The Seminoles made it 2-1 about 30 minutes later as 38th-ranked Nze fell to No. 25 McCreless on court one, 6-2, 6-3. The loss dropped Nze to 14-9 in dual match play, and 7-11 against nationally ranked opponents. Florida State's Amy Sargeant evened the score just minutes later, defeating Granson at No. 4, 6-2, 6-3. The loss was just Granson's sixth of the season and moved her to 11-5 from the No. 4 position.

“It was nice for [Clayton] to get a quick win, but we couldn't build on it across the courts,” said head coach Jamie Ashworth. “We could have gotten off to better starts and given them an uphill to look at, and we just couldn't do that.”

In last Saturday's match against Florida State, Gorny clinched the victory with her win over Jessica Sucupira at No. 5 singles. However, in Friday's ACC Tournament meeting, it was Sucupira who had the upper hand, as she defeated Gorny, 6-3, 6-4, to give the Seminoles a 3-2 lead. Gorny's loss dropped her to 15-8 in dual match play this season.

With two matches remaining in contention, all eyes turned to court two where 72nd-ranked Plotkin was battling the Seminoles' Katie Rybakova. Rybakova won the first set, but Plotkin fought back to take the second and force a deciding set. Plotkin had a strong effort in the third set, winning several key points, but was unable to complete the comeback as she fell, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3. Zsilinszka's match at No. 3 singles was unfinished with Zsilinszka up, 6-4, 4-1.

“Kind of across the board, we didn't get off to the starts that we wanted to,” Ashworth said. “[Florida State] played with more fight than we did – not that we didn't compete, not that we didn't try ... After that performance, I wish we could just get back on the court and play.”

The Blue Devils will await seeding for the NCAA Tournament, which is slated to start on May 14 at on campus sites.

#14 Florida State University 4, #10 Duke 2
Apr 23, 2010 at Cary, N.C. (Cary Tennis Park)

Singles competition

1. #25 Lauren McCreless (FSU) def. #38 Ellah Nze (DU) 6-2, 6-3

2. Katie Rybakova (FSU) def. #72 Elizabeth Plotkin (DU) 6-4, 4-6, 6-3

3. #101 Francesca Segarelli (FSU) vs. #35 Reka Zsilinszka (DU) 4-6, 0-3, unfinished

4. Amy Sargeant (FSU) def. Amanda Granson (DU) 6-2, 6-3

5. Mary Clayton (DU) def. Federica Suess (FSU) 6-1, 6-1

6. Jessica Sucupira (FSU) def. Monica Gorny (DU) 6-3, 6-4

Doubles competition

1. Lauren McCreless/Francesca Segarelli (FSU) def. #38 Ellah Nze/Amanda Granson (DU) 8-2

2. #53 Monica Gorny/Mary Clayton (DU) def. Federica Suess/Jessica Sucupira (FSU) 8-4