Duke was in control, up a break and just a game away from sealing a doubles match on court two to take a 1-0 lead.
But the precarious hopes of San Diego's Joshua Page and Uron Petronijevic were saved as a second serve hit the net, took a few seconds as it flew high in the air and then dropped into the service area. The Toreros won the point to even the match at 5-5, then won the next eight points to win 7-5 and instead give San Diego the one-point advantage heading into singles play.
That point proved to be crucial, as No. 22 San Diego defeated the No. 13 Blue Devils 4-2 at Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center Sunday afternoon during the ITA Kick-Off Weekend, clinching a berth in the ITA National Men’s Team Indoor Championships. Duke's T.J. Pura led 4-3 in the third set on the final court, but the junior did not have a chance to complete his match before the Toreros closed out the match. The doubles loss, combined with four first-set setbacks in singles, proved too great a hole for the Blue Devils to overcome.
“You look at every single court, and we were right there and had chances,” Duke head coach Ramsey Smith said. “We had a whole lot of opportunities, and we just didn’t get it done.”
Down 5-4, tied at deuce, Page and Petronijevic won on a second-serve point after breaking Duke the previous game. Although the Blue Devils (1-2) won handily on court three, courts one and two went the Toreros' way and gave the visitors a pivotal first point.
The momentum seemed to carry over into singles play. Sophomore Nicolas Alvarez—ranked No. 12 in the country—dropped five of his first six games to No. 35 Petronijevic at first singles before losing the set 6-4. Within two minutes, Vincent Lin, Pura and Josh Levine had also lost their sets, forcing the Blue Devils to play from behind.
But with all six singles matches finishing their first sets at around the same time, the tide seemed to turn.
Pura set the tempo against No. 34 Jordan Angus with approach shots that threw his opponent off balance. San Diego (4-0) entered with a reputation for a strong one-two-three punch, but Angus won the second set and led for much of the third frame.
In his second set, Alvarez opened a 3-1 lead after a break-point winner down the right baseline. Levine won back a set on court six, while freshmen Catalin Mateas and Adrian Chamdani cruised to straight-set victories to give Duke a brief 2-1 lead.
“I felt like we made a nice push midway through the singles and competed really well in that middle stretch and got ourselves back in the match,” Smith said. “It [had been] the first time we had ever lost a doubles [point] with the freshmen."
But with Duke needing two matches to win, Levine struggled in the third set and Alvarez could not capitalize in the second. Alvarez dropped two set points, unable to return Petronijevic's serves, and fell 4-6, 5-7.
Before Pura could decide his third set, San Diego captured the second set on court three. Filip Vittek won the first set and opened up a 5-4 lead against Lin, but on a match and break point, he lost his lead with a forehand into the net.
The error opened up an opportunity for Lin as the match headed to a tiebreak, where the server won each of the first nine points. Lin found an opening with a 6-4 lead, but he dropped the next two points before falling 4-6, 6-7 (8-10).
“That’s a tough loss for Vinny, but I thought that’s the best he played all year, and [he] competed great,” Smith said, “He’s not feeling 100 percent, but he laid it out on the court, and that guy stepped up.”
Just as Lin's match ended, and with Duke needing to win on courts two and six to stay alive, Page defeated Levine 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 at No. 6 singles to secure the San Diego victory.
The Blue Devils had reached the ITA Kick-Off Weekend Championship after California forfeited Saturday’s match, unable to travel to Durham due to winter storm Jonas. Duke felt the other end of the stick two years ago, when it was unable to travel to Houston for the National Indoor Team Championship due to a different winter storm.
The Blue Devils return to action Friday with a home match against Illinois.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.