Blue Devils Take on Bulls in NCAA First Round

Match 23
No. 32 Duke (12-10) vs. No. 31 South Florida (16-9)
Saturday, May 8 l 10 a.m.
Gainesville, Fla. | Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex
Watch | Live Results

DURHAM – No. 32 Duke will match up against No. 31 South Florida on Saturday morning in the first round of the NCAA Team Championship at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex.

This will be the Blue Devils' 28th overall appearance in the postseason tournament and 22nd showing in the last 25 seasons. Should Duke defeat the Bulls on Saturday, it would take on the winner of the No. 2 Florida (20-2) versus South Alabama (12-7) match on Sunday at 2 p.m.

Tickets to the event may be purchased in advance or on each day of the tournament. An all-session pass is $10 for adults and $5 for senior citizens, college students, and children under 12. Single day tickets for Saturday and Sunday are $5 for adults and $3 for senior citizens, college students, and children under 12.

Gates will open for fans one hour prior to the start of the first competition each day. Based on updated recommendations from the NCAA's COVID-19 Medical Advisory Group local guidelines for fan attendance are not to exceed 50 percent of the venue capacity at any outdoor NCAA Championships.

HISTORY WITH SOUTH FLORIDA
Duke owns a 5-1 advantage in the all-time series with the last meeting a 4-0 Bulls victory on May 12, 2017, at the 2017 NCAA Team Championship in Athens, Ga. Of the six meetings, three have taken place on neutral courts, with the other two coming in 1982 (Auburn, Ala.) and 1989 (Corpus Christi, Texas).

During the 2017 match, the Blue Devils dropped a highly contested doubles point in tiebreak fashion before suffering setbacks in singles action as the Bulls pulled away in the match.

TAKING ON THE GATORS
Florida owns a 23-18 advantage in the all-time series, but Duke won the last meeting, 4-0 on Feb. 19, 2012, at the ITA National Team Championships. If the Blue Devils face off against the Gators, it will mark Duke's 28th trip to Gainesville. These two foes played the opening 20 matches of the series on Florida's home court as well.

In the 2012 match, Duke claimed a 1-0 lead over Florida with wins on courts one and three in doubles action. Heading into singles play with a 1-0 lead, the Blue Devils kept the momentum going with first-set victories on all six courts. Duke then secured the win after clinching victories on court one, two and three for the 4-0 win.

AGAINST SOUTH ALABAMA
The Blue Devils hold the slim 2-1 edge on the all-time series with South Alabama. Duke claimed the last meeting in the series 4-3 on March 31, 1998. The Blue Devils also registered a 4-3 win on April 4, 1996 before the Jaguars earned their lone victory in the series on March 18, 1997 by a 4-3 score.

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
Duke owns an all-time record of 47-27 (.635) when competing in the NCAA Championship. The Blue Devils' last NCAA appearance was in 2018 when they fell to Mississippi, 4-3, in the Palo Alto, Calif. Duke has reached as far as the quarterfinals eight times (1993, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2012 and 2013).

STRENGTH IN NUMBERS
Duke is one of nine ACC teams to receive a bid to the NCAA Team Championship, joining ACC Champion and No. 5 Virginia, No. 6 North Carolina, No. 10 Wake Forest, Duke, Georgia Tech, Miami, NC State, Notre Dame and Virginia Tech. The nine teams are the second most of any conference.

SCULLEY-JOHNS TO NCAA DOUBLES TOURNAMENT
Senior Sean Sculley and sophomore Garrett Johns will represent Duke at the 2021 NCAA Doubles Championship from May 23-28 at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla. The Blue Devils' top doubles duo received an at-large bid to compete in the 32-team doubles field. The two are the first Duke doubles team to reach the field since Spencer Furman and Nick Stachowiak in 2017.

The pair have formed Duke's top doubles team, going 9-8 overall and 8-7 on court one. The tandem, which earned its highest ranking of No. 12 on April 14, recorded its last victory against No. 45 Fabien Salle and Matthew Fung of Louisville in the ACC Championship second round on April 22. Sculley and Johns, who went 4-4 in ACC action, held a top-20 national ranking throughout the entire season and have gone 4-5 against ranked opponents.

THREE ALL-ACC HONOREES
Johns, Sculley and Andrew Zhang all garnered All-ACC recognition this year. Johns was tabbed to the second team, while Sculley and Zhang were third team selections. The all-league honor was a first for all three players.

ITA TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS
The Blue Devils are currently ranked No. 32 nationally in the latest ITA poll.

Johns (No. 76) is Duke's lone singles player ranked while Johns and Sculley are the No. 20 ranked doubles team in the country as well.

#GoDuke

Blue Devils Take on Bulls in NCAA First Round

Players Mentioned

Spencer Furman

Garrett Johns

Sean Sculley

Nick Stachowiak

Andrew Zhang

Duke information

Blue Devils Take on Bulls in NCAA First Round

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Nick Stachowiak

Andrew Zhang

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