University of Illinois
DUKE
Illinois Puts The Heat On The Blue Devils
February 7, 2003 | Men's Tennis
Feb. 7, 2003
The Illinois men's tennis team had a score to settle with Duke. It was the Blue Devils that came into the UI Atkins Tennis Center last March 3 and knocked the Illini out of their first-ever No. 1 national ranking after just a few days at the top. Tonight, the second-ranked Fighting Illini repelled the eighth-ranked visitors, handing them a 6-1 defeat, their first of the season.
The Orange and Blue got on the scoreboard first with victories at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles. Second-ranked Michael Calkins and Amer Delic moved their season record to 13-3 with an 8-3 pounding of Ludovic Walter and Jonathan Stokke, and Phil Stolt and Ryler DeHeart remained undefeated (4-0), defeating Stephen Amritraj and Peter Shults, 8-5. Illinois earned the doubles point despite the fact the Brian Wilson and Rajeev Ram sustained the team's first doubles loss (after 11 wins) of the dual-match season. It was just about as tight as a match could be, with Duke's Phillip King and Mike Yani edging the UI duo, 9-8 (5).
Delic, ranked No. 2 in the nation, did not live up to his billing in singles Friday night. He succumbed to King, 6-1, 6-1, to allow Duke (now 3-1) to tie the team score at 1. But after that, it was all Illinois. Calkins, ranked No. 42, dispatched Yorke Allen, 6-2, 6-1, in the No. 5 match, and the No. 20 Wilson outplayed the 77th-ranked Walter, winning, 6-4, 6-1. Then all eyes shifted to the south half of Atkins, where the even-numbered courts are situated. Stolt, ranked sixth in the nation won his No. 4 match with Stokke in straight sets, 7-6, 6-3, to clinch the victory for Illinois (now 4-0). Two freshmen put the icing on the cake for the hosts, finishing almost simultaneously. DeHeart got past Amritraj, 7-5, 6-1, at No. 6, and Ram came back strong after a sluggish start, beating the talented, 32nd-ranked Yani in the No. 2 contest, 2-6, 7-5, 6-2. The win in the sixth spot was a team-leading 18 for the left-handed Floridian.
"I was very pleased with our results tonight, for the most part," said UI Head Coach Craig Tiley. "Several of our players were down a break early, but they came back strong and played well. We talked about Duke in the locker room before the match. They're a good team, and we knew they'd be motivated to beat us. I told the guys, if they fell behind early, to hang tough, and they did."
One of the reasons the Illini seemed to play some inspired tennis was the capacity crowd. The energy was high, due in part to the presence of Net Nuts support group and the Illinois pep band's first-ever appearance at the Atkins Tennis Center.
"The band was truly amazing," said Stolt. "It was so much fun to have them here. We have a very different atmosphere at our home matches from the pros and most other colleges. The students are finding out that it's a very good time at the tennis center, and they're telling their friends to come out."
"Having just joined the team recently, I've really come to enjoy the atmosphere of college tennis," said Ram. "It's great having fans and teammates cheering you on. The band was pretty cool. I had been a little low on energy coming into the match, but the helped me get fired up."
The Fighting Illini don't have much time to celebrate. Just after the courts cleared, shortly before 10 p.m., the Georgia Bulldogs came out to practice. The No. 27 team in the nation, they provide the opposition for Illinois Sunday at 1 p.m. at No. 2 ILLINOIS 6, No. 8 Duke 0
SINGLES: 1. Phillip King (Duke) def. No. 2 Amer Delic (ILL) 6-1, 6-1 2. Rajeev Ram (ILL) def. No. 32 Michael Yani (Duke) 2-6, 7-5, 6-2] 3. No. 20 Brian Wilson (ILL) def. No. 77 Ludovic Walter (Duke) 6-4, 6-1 4. No. 6 Phil Stolt (ILL) def. Jonathan Stokke (Duke) 7-6, 6-3 * 5. No. 42 Michael Calkins (ILL) def. Yorke Allen (Duke) 6-2, 6-1 6. No. 84 Ryler DeHeart (ILL) def. Stephen Amritraj 7-5, 6-1* match-clinching victoryDOUBLES: 1. Phillip King/Michael Yani (Duke) def. Brian Wilson/Rajeev Ram (ILL) 9-8 (5) 2. No. 2 Michael Calkins/Amer Delic (ILL) def. Ludovic Walter/Jonathan Stokke (Duke) 8-3 3. Phil Stolt/Ryler DeHeart (ILL) def. Stephen Amritraj/Peter Shults (Duke) 8-5
