URBANA, Ill. – Duke men’s tennis beat Illinois, 4-2, on Saturday at Atkins Tennis Center.
With the win, the Blue Devils shifted to 5-3 on the year, while Illinois dropped to 1-6.
Duke claimed the doubles points to kick off the match and take an early 1-0 edge. The sophomore duo of Faris Khan and Niroop Vallabhaneni defeated Alex Brown and Gabrielus Guzauskas on court three 6-3 to begin the doubles round. The Illini responded with a 6-4 victory on court one after No. 59 Lucas Horve and Hunter Heck bested No. 45 Garrett Johns and Sean Sculley to even things up. Rookie Connor Krug and junior Andrew Zhang then beat Siphosothando Montsi and Olivier Stuart on court two, 7-5, to secure the doubles point.
Illinois tied the overall match up to start singles play after Heck defeated Vallabhaneni 6-3, 6-2 on court four. Sophomore Andrew Dale put Duke back in front, 2-1, after he defeated Guzauskas 6-4, 6-4 on court five.
The Illini would not go away though, tying the match up at 2-2 following a win by Brown. On court three, No. 107 Krug claimed the opening set 6-1 but saw Brown register 7-5, 6-3 wins over the next two frames to steal the win.
The Blue Devils jumped back in front after Johns defeated No. 63 Stuart 6-2 on the top court in the opening set. The junior then held on 7-6 (2) for the tie-break win in the second to earn the victory.
Senior Edu Güell then clinched the overall match for Duke following his 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 three-set win over Horve on court six.
The match between No. 103 Zhang and Montsi on court two went unfinished with Zhang earning a 6-4 win in the first set and Montsi posting a 6-3 victory in the second. Zhang was leading 4-3 when the match was halted.
The Blue Devils welcome Coastal Carolina and Campbell on Saturday, Feb. 26 for a doubleheader. Duke will face off against the Chanticleers at 10 a.m. before meeting up with the Camels at 2 p.m. The matches are schedule for Ambler Tennis Stadium but have the potential to shift indoors to Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center if there is projected bad weather.
RESULTS
Doubles (3,1,2)
1. #59 Lucas Horve/Hunter Heck (Illinois) def. #45 Sean Sculley/Garrett Johns (Duke) 6-4
2. Andrew Zhang/Connor Krug (Duke) def. Siphosothando Montsi/Olivier Stuart (Illinois) 7-5
3. Faris Khan/Niroop Vallabhaneni (Duke) def. Alex Brown/Gabrielus Guzauskas (Illinois) 6-3
Singles (4,5,3,1,6)
1. Garrett Johns (Duke) def. #63 Olivier Stuart (Illinois) 6-2, 7-6 (6-2)
2. Siphosothando Montsi (Illinois) vs. #103 Andrew Zhang (Duke) 6-4, 3-6, 4-3, unfinished
3. Alex Brown (Illinois) def. #107 Connor Krug (Duke) 1-6, 7-5, 6-3
4. Hunter Heck (Illinois) def. Niroop Vallabhaneni (Duke) 6-3, 6-2
5. Andrew Dale (Duke) def. Gabrielus Guzauskas (Illinois) 6-4, 6-4
6. Edu Güell (Duke) def. Lucas Horve (Illinois) 6-3, 3-6, 6-1
#GoDuke
