Duke Completes Weekend Sweep Following 5-2 Win Over No. 23 NC State

Sunday, April 2

Durham, N.C.

1 p.m.

Duke University

[23] NC State

Duke Completes Weekend Sweep Following 5-2 Win Over No. 23 NC State

4/2/2023 7:09:00 PM | Men's Tennis

Box Score

DURHAM – No. 21 Duke men's tennis registered its fourth consecutive victory, including its second straight over a top-25 opponent when it defeated No. 23 NC State on Sunday afternoon at Ambler Tennis Stadium.

The Blue Devils improve to 15-5 overall and 8-1 in ACC play. Duke sits in sole possession of second place in the conference, trailing Virginia who remains undefeated at 8-0. The Blue Devils' eight league wins ties its total from a year ago and are two victories away from tying the program record which was set in 2014. The Wolfpack fall to 12-7 and 6-2, respectively.

Despite dropping the doubles point, Duke rallied to win five of the six singles matches to earn its first win over NC State since 2018. Sophomore Connor Krug clinched the overall win for the Blue Devils after beating Robin Catry in three sets on court four.

How It Happened

Sunday's doubles point was a battle from the start. Braden Shick and Fons Van Sambeek claimed a 6-2 victory on court three over Connor Krug and Teddy Truwit to hand the visitors a slight edge. No. 71 Garrett Johns and Pedro Rodenas then tied things up at one match apiece following a 7-5 upset win over No. 27 Robin Catry and Luca Staeheli on the main court.
With the doubles point coming down to the outcome on court two, No. 40 Rafa Izquierdo Luque and Joseph Wayand outlasted No. 54 Michael Heller and Andrew Zhang thanks to a 7-6 (1) tiebreak decision to secure the point.
Duke made quick work of the Wolfpack on court three and one, respectively, during singles play to jump on top, 2-1.
Zhang's match with Shick on court three was the first to finish with the Bloomfield Hills, Mich., native posting a 6-2, 6-1 win.
No. 17 Johns followed suit, recording a 6-2, 6-3 win over No. 52 Izquierdo Luque on the top court.
NC State knotted the overall score at 2-2 when Martin Borisiouk bested Jake Krug 6-4, 6-1 on court six.
The final three matches went to three sets with Andrew Dale's contest against Van Sambeek on court five being the next to finish. Van Sambeek tallied the 7-6 (4) tiebreak win in the opening set but Dale battled back to register 6-1, 6-1 victories over the last two frames to steal the win.
Connor Krug then secured the overall win for Duke when he defeated Catry on court four. Connor Krug posted a 6-3 win in the first set but dropped the second 7-5. Fortunately, the Lakewood Ranch, Fla., native rebounded to earn a 6-2 victory in the last frame to claim the win.
In the final match of the day, No. 98 Rodenas bested No. 73 Staeheli on court two for his fourth victory over a nationally ranked opponent. Staeheli recorded a 6-2 victory in the first set, but Rodenas bounced back to claim the next two 6-1, 7-5 to register the win.

Notes

Both Connor Krug and Rodenas are on a four-matching winning streak.
Connor Krug posted his second match-clinching victory of the year.
Five Blue Devils have reached 10-plus dual singles wins on the season, led by Rodenas' team-leading 18-2 mark. The freshman remains unbeaten on court two at 9-0.

Quotes
"It was great to be back at home. I think we got a lot tougher and figured out a lot about ourselves with the six-match road stretch. Our preparation has been mainly focused on the mental side and getting better there. We're a couple weeks in and it's neat to see that paying off. The biggest thing we're seeing is that guys are able to be clear, calm and collected going into the big moments and are handling adversity well. It was a huge weekend for us. All these matches are really tough. I have so much respect for both of those teams, and it felt good to get those wins." – Duke head coach Ramsey Smith

"The captains led the way. They were awesome. Garrett [Johns] has had some tough matches recently and he recommitted to being a mental giant out there and that was a guy that beat him pretty bad last year and he just came out from point one knowing what he needed to do and staying super composed. To win quickly at one and three at two of their best spots, that just gave everyone else confidence and we were able to build some team momentum after losing the doubles point." – Duke head coach Ramsey Smith

"Connor [Krug] was amazing from start to finish. It's not just that he clinched, it was how he clinched and his commitment to going after the ball. He handled frustration well. He lost a challenging second set but mentally he's just made massive jumps the last couple weeks and it's shown in his results. It's just really exciting because he has a big-time game that sometimes he hasn't always utilized and we're starting to see it now. I think that was their best spot in their singles lineup and to be able to clinch and win the dual match for us and to do it in dominate fashion in the third set, I'm just really proud of him." – Duke head coach Ramsey Smith

"It's a great feeling to clinch the match. That feeling is exactly why we all play the sport and why we spend hours on the practice court. I think there is nothing like it, so I just appreciate those moments whenever they happen." – Duke sophomore Connor Krug

"Over the past two weeks, the entire team has been making a strong effort on the mental side of the sport. I think we have all the talent in the world and everybody is just really putting in the hard work and you can see everything we're doing on the practice court is paying dividends. Guys are playing the big moments a lot better than we did at the start of the year and you can also see times when we're down in the score or things aren't going that well, we're able to flip that and gain momentum. I think what we're doing an even better job of is rebounding off of wins. It's easy to get back up after a loss because you've got to get right back at it but sometimes the high in tennis can lead to a lull in the next match and we've been really staying focused on understanding how talented this group is and how much we can achieve. I think that's what really motivates us, knowing how far we can really go." – Duke sophomore Connor Krug

Next Match
The Blue Devils travel to nearby North Carolina on Saturday for a showdown with the Tar Heels at 2:30 p.m. at Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center.

To stay up to date with Blue Devils men's tennis, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching "DukeMTEN".

Results
Doubles (3,1,2*)
1. #71 Garrett Johns/Pedro Rodenas (DU) def. #27 Robin Catry/Luca Staeheli (ST) 7-5
2. #40 Rafa Izquierdo Luque/Joseph Wayand (ST) def. #54 Michael Heller/Andrew Zhang (DU) 7-6 (7-1)
3. Braden Shick/Fons Van Sambeek (ST) def. Connor Krug/Teddy Truwit (DU) 6-2

Singles (3,1,6,5,4*,2)
1. #17 Garrett Johns (DU) def. #52 Rafa Izquierdo Luque (ST) 6-2, 6-3
2. #98 Pedro Rodenas (DU) def. #73 Luca Staeheli (ST) 2-6, 6-1, 7-5
3. Andrew Zhang (DU) def. Braden Shick (ST) 6-2, 6-1
4. Connor Krug (DU) def. Robin Catry (ST) 6-3, 5-7, 6-2
5. Andrew Dale (DU) def. Fons Van Sambeek (ST) 6-7 (4-7), 6-1, 6-1
6. Martin Borisiouk (ST) def. Jake Krug (DU) 6-4, 6-1

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