Duke Tops Men's Tennis In ACC Quarterfinal, 4-0

Friday, April 19

Cary, N.C.

10 AM

North Carolina

Duke (Quarterfinals)

Karl Poling

Photo by: Jaylynn Nash/ACC

April 19, 2024 | Men's Tennis

By: Matt Bowers

CARY, N.C.— Fourth-seeded Duke won a tight doubles point and went on to defeat fifth-seeded North Carolina, 4-0, on Friday in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Atlantic Coast Conference Championship at the Cary Tennis Park.

Carolina had early advantages in all three doubles matches before the Blue Devils rallied at the No. 2 and No. 1 slots to capture the doubles point. Duke then picked up singles wins at No. 5, No. 1 and No. 2 for the team win.

With the victory, the 12th-ranked Blue Devils (18-8) advanced to Saturday's semifinals, where it will play top-seeded Virginia at 10 a.m. in Cary. The Tar Heels, ranked No. 28 in this week's Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings, dropped to 14-9 this season.

Carolina now awaits word on its NCAA Tournament destination. The Tar Heels have made 31 NCAA Tournament appearances, including nine in a row (the 2020 NCAA Tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic).

How It Happened
Doubles
• UNC built some early momentum, leading in all three matches midway through doubles play before Duke rallied.
• The 70th-ranked duo of Andrew Zhang and Michael Heller topped Patrick Schoen and Peter Murphy, 6-3, at No. 2 for the first doubles decision of the morning.
• At No. 1, a double-fault allowed Duke's top-ranked doubles team of Garrett Johns and Pedro Rodenas to earn a break and take a 5-4 lead over #31 Benjamin Kittay and Phillip Jordan. The Blue Devils won the next game to take a 6-4 decision and give Duke a 1-0 team lead.
• At No. 3, Tar Heels Will Peters and Karl Poling were leading, 6-5, against Faris Khan and Teddy Truit when the match went unfinished.

Singles
• At No. 5, the match between Peters and Khan was tied, 4-4, in the first set when Peters went down with an injury. After the training staff re-taped his left ankle, Khan won the set shortly thereafter, 6-4. Peters battled gamely throughout the second set before Khan won, 6-3.
• At No. 1 singles, Kittay lost his first set to the 22nd-ranked Johns, 6-4. Kittay was trailing, 4-3, in the second frame when match officials ruled that Kittay lost by default.
• Jordan dropped his match at No. 2 to #43 Rodenas, 6-7 (2), 5-7.
• Schoen and Zhang split the first two sets of their match at No. 3 singles when play ceased.
• Poling, ranked #81 in singles play, split his first two sets with Connor Krug and was trailing, 5-2, in the third frame when play ended.
• Anuj Watane won his first set at No. 6 against Khan, 6-4, and was trailing, 5-4, in the second set when the match came to an end.

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Tennis Match Results

North Carolina vs Duke
4/19/2024 at Cary, NC (Cary Tennis Park)
#12 Duke 4, #18 North Carolina 0

Singles competition
1. #22 Garrett Johns (DU) def. Benjamin Kittay (NC) 6-4, 4-3 (default)
2. #43 Pedro Rodenas (DU) def. Phillip Jordan (NC) 7-6 (6-2), 7-5
3. Andrew Zhang (DU) vs. Patrick Schoen (NC) 7-6 (9-7), 4-6, unfinished
\4. Connor Krug (DU) vs. #81 Karl Poling (NC) 6-4, 4-6, 5-2, unfinished
5. Alexander Visser (DU) def. Will Peters (NC) 6-4, 6-3
6. Faris Khan (DU) vs. Anuj Watane (NC) 4-6, 5-4, unfinished

Doubles competition
1. #1 Garrett Johns/Pedro Rodenas (DU) def. #31 Benjamin Kittay/Phillip Jordan (NC) 6-4
2. #70 Andrew Zhang/Michael Heller (DU) def. Patrick Schoen/Peter Murphy (NC) 6-3
3. Faris Khan/Teddy Truwit (DU) vs. Karl Poling/Will Peters (NC) 5-6, unfinished

Match Notes
North Carolina 14-9, 7-5; National ranking #28
Duke 17-8, 9-3; National ranking #12

Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (5,1, 2)
2024 ACC Men's Tennis Championship: Quarterfinals, Match 2