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Sykut Promoted to Associate Head Coach
8/2/2022 10:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
DURHAM – Duke men's tennis head coach Ramsey Smith has announced the elevation of Maciek Sykut to associate head coach.
Sykut is beginning his third season on the coaching staff for the Blue Devils.
"This is a great moment to acknowledge Maciek for his leadership within Duke tennis," Smith said. "He brings a unique combination of determination and humility to the team and court and as a result, he is becoming a significant factor in our program's success. Maciek's promotion to associate head coach is a great recognition of the important role he plays in developing our players and our culture. I'm thrilled for him to be an associate head coach at Duke."
Sykut has been an integral part of Duke's success over the last two years since joining the staff in 2020. During his short tenure in Durham, the Blue Devils have posted a 29-20 record. Sykut also had a hand in bringing in Duke's incoming recruiting class, which was ranked the No. 9 class in the nation, according to rankings released by TennisRecruiting.net.
After his first year with the program was hindered by the COVID-19 pandemic, Sykut helped the Blue Devils this past season post an impressive 17-9 overall mark, including an 8-4 record in ACC play. A considerable improvement from his first year in which Duke finished at 12-11 and 6-5, respectively.
"I am grateful to Coach (Ramsey) Smith and our administration for the opportunity to continue to grow as a coach with Duke men's tennis," Sykut said. "The opportunity to take on an expanded role with this team, while continuing to learn from Coach Smith, is one I don't take for granted. I believe we are building a great program together and l am excited about its future."
This spring, Sykut oversaw seven victories over nationally ranked opponents, helped the Blue Devils break back into the top-25, and achieve the program's 28th overall appearance in the NCAA Team Championship field. Four of those wins over nationally ranked competition came during a season-high winning-streak of six consecutive victories, including a 5-2 triumph over rival and No. 17 ranked North Carolina. That win marked the Blue Devils' first over the Tar Heels since April 20, 2014.
This past season, the Blue Devils concluded the regular season with eight ACC victories, marking the first time since the 2016-17 season in which Duke achieved that feat. Those eight wins placed the team tied for seventh in program lore for most ACC wins.
Duke's regular season schedule prepared it for postseason competition with eight of its nine losses coming to NCAA Team Championship participants, four to teams in the final top-10 and six to teams within the top-25. Sykut helped last year's squad reach a high ranking of No. 17 in the ITA ledger on March 14, the highest ranking for the program in four years.
Sykut has been important in the development of numerous Blue Devils, specifically Andrew Zhang, Garrett Johns and Connor Krug. For the last two years, Zhang has led the program in singles wins, including a 12-4 dual mark at the Blue Devils second spot and an impressive 8-1 record in ACC play. Zhang had a solid fall season as well, winning the 2021 ITA Carolina Regional Championship singles title after defeating Wake Forest's Taha Baadi. That victory handed Duke its first title since 2011 when Chris Mengel earned the honor. Johns received an at-large bid to the NCAA Singles championship and ranked in the top-50 throughout much of the 2022 season. Playing on Duke's top court in every match, Johns held an 8-8 mark against nationally ranked opponents, including a match-clinching victory over No. 22 Brian Cernoch of North Carolina. He finished second on the team in match-clinching wins with five and was named a Second Team All-ACC honoree at the conclusion of the season. In his first year in a Blue Devil uniform, Krug posted a 19-13 overall record and a 4-3 mark in ACC play. The rookie also finished 3-1 against nationally ranked opponents. During the fall season, Krug was the only freshman to reach semifinals of ITA Carolina Regional, defeating two nationally ranked top-50 opponents.
#GoDuke
Sykut is beginning his third season on the coaching staff for the Blue Devils.
"This is a great moment to acknowledge Maciek for his leadership within Duke tennis," Smith said. "He brings a unique combination of determination and humility to the team and court and as a result, he is becoming a significant factor in our program's success. Maciek's promotion to associate head coach is a great recognition of the important role he plays in developing our players and our culture. I'm thrilled for him to be an associate head coach at Duke."
Sykut has been an integral part of Duke's success over the last two years since joining the staff in 2020. During his short tenure in Durham, the Blue Devils have posted a 29-20 record. Sykut also had a hand in bringing in Duke's incoming recruiting class, which was ranked the No. 9 class in the nation, according to rankings released by TennisRecruiting.net.
After his first year with the program was hindered by the COVID-19 pandemic, Sykut helped the Blue Devils this past season post an impressive 17-9 overall mark, including an 8-4 record in ACC play. A considerable improvement from his first year in which Duke finished at 12-11 and 6-5, respectively.
"I am grateful to Coach (Ramsey) Smith and our administration for the opportunity to continue to grow as a coach with Duke men's tennis," Sykut said. "The opportunity to take on an expanded role with this team, while continuing to learn from Coach Smith, is one I don't take for granted. I believe we are building a great program together and l am excited about its future."
This spring, Sykut oversaw seven victories over nationally ranked opponents, helped the Blue Devils break back into the top-25, and achieve the program's 28th overall appearance in the NCAA Team Championship field. Four of those wins over nationally ranked competition came during a season-high winning-streak of six consecutive victories, including a 5-2 triumph over rival and No. 17 ranked North Carolina. That win marked the Blue Devils' first over the Tar Heels since April 20, 2014.
This past season, the Blue Devils concluded the regular season with eight ACC victories, marking the first time since the 2016-17 season in which Duke achieved that feat. Those eight wins placed the team tied for seventh in program lore for most ACC wins.
Duke's regular season schedule prepared it for postseason competition with eight of its nine losses coming to NCAA Team Championship participants, four to teams in the final top-10 and six to teams within the top-25. Sykut helped last year's squad reach a high ranking of No. 17 in the ITA ledger on March 14, the highest ranking for the program in four years.
Sykut has been important in the development of numerous Blue Devils, specifically Andrew Zhang, Garrett Johns and Connor Krug. For the last two years, Zhang has led the program in singles wins, including a 12-4 dual mark at the Blue Devils second spot and an impressive 8-1 record in ACC play. Zhang had a solid fall season as well, winning the 2021 ITA Carolina Regional Championship singles title after defeating Wake Forest's Taha Baadi. That victory handed Duke its first title since 2011 when Chris Mengel earned the honor. Johns received an at-large bid to the NCAA Singles championship and ranked in the top-50 throughout much of the 2022 season. Playing on Duke's top court in every match, Johns held an 8-8 mark against nationally ranked opponents, including a match-clinching victory over No. 22 Brian Cernoch of North Carolina. He finished second on the team in match-clinching wins with five and was named a Second Team All-ACC honoree at the conclusion of the season. In his first year in a Blue Devil uniform, Krug posted a 19-13 overall record and a 4-3 mark in ACC play. The rookie also finished 3-1 against nationally ranked opponents. During the fall season, Krug was the only freshman to reach semifinals of ITA Carolina Regional, defeating two nationally ranked top-50 opponents.
#GoDuke
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