Box Score (PDF) | Highlights
URBANA, Ill. – The No. 15 Fighting Illini men's tennis team defeated the Duke Blue Devils, 6-1 on Friday night in front of an energetic crowd at Atkins Tennis Center. Illinois opens the dual match season with a 1-0 record.
"It is great to start off the season with a home win," said head coach Brad Dancer. "Always have to credit the Net Nuts, our fantastic fans, and all of the people that came out and supported the team. This is what makes playing at Illinois so special."
The sophomore duo of Alex Brown and Caleb Chakravarthi started in doubles play with a 6-2 victory over Nick Stachowiak and Spencer Furman. On court two, junior Aleks Kovacevic and freshman Keenan Mayo clinched the doubles point, defeating Robert Levine and Jason Lapidus.
Returners Kovacevic and Chakravarthi helped the Illini earn back-to-back singles victories. Chakravarthi defeated Samir Agadi with a pair of 6-2s. Continuing the momentum, Kovacevic won over Spencer Furman, 6-2, 6-4. Mayo clinched the match, 6-4, 6-4, for the Illini with an exhilarating victory over Robert Levine. Winning the first set, junior Noe Khlif battled back defeat Vincent Lin, 6-0, 5-7, 6-3. With a gritty performance, junior Zeke Clark was the final team point for the Illini, winning the third set tiebreaker 10-8 against Catalin Mateas.
"We have a great team and leadership," noted Dancer. "I am proud of the guys, especially Noe (Khlif) and Zeke (Clark) for the resiliency they showed."
Up next, the Illini hit the road for their first away match in South Bend, Ind. against Notre Dame next Wednesday at 4 p.m. CT. Afterwards, the Illini return home to Atkins to welcome Kentucky and No. 6 North Carolina on Friday, Feb. 8 and Saturday, Feb. 9, respectively.
Illinois Notes
- The Illini continue their season-opening dual match streak to 13 out of the 14 seasons head coach Brad Dancer has led Illinois men's tennis.
- With a third consecutive win over Duke, Illinois leads the overall series 18-7.
- In their first dual match outing, doubles pair Aleks Kovacevic and Keenan Mayo defeated Duke's Robert Levine and Jason Lapidus, 6-4.
- Sophomore duo Alex Brown and Caleb Chakravarthi extended their dual match record to 20-9 after defeating Nick Stachowiak and Spencer Furman, 6-2
- In his first year of college tennis, freshman Mayo clinched the match for the Orange and Blue, with an exciting win over Robert Levine, 6-4, 6-4.
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