When senior Phillip King came out on the losing end of his quarterfinal match at the NCAA Championships, an illustrious Duke career came to a close.
After winning his first three matches in the championship, fifth-seeded King fell Saturday to Michael Kogan of Tulane 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 in a contest characterized by multiple shifts in momentum. The loss was a major disappointment for King especially after Duke failed to advance past the second round in team competition.
"When I warmed up with him before that match I thought he had the chance to win the whole thing," head coach Jay Lapidus said. "If it was a different matchup he could have gotten through to the semifinals or even the finals."
Kogan--using a combination of shots and mixing up his pace--was able to throw off King's rhythm. The windy conditions also proved troublesome.
"It was a tough match with tough conditions, the wind was blowing really strong," King said. "The wind is a really great equalizer."
In the first, King went down an early break but rallied back and served for the set. The senior, however, was unable to complete the first set comeback, as Kogan broke back when King was serving for the set and went on to take the first 7-5.
After winning the second, King had the momentum back on his side entering the final set. In the first game of the third set, King built a love-40 advantage and was on the verge of breaking when Kogan held his ground to win the opening game.
King advanced to the quarterfinals by beating Guillaume Bouvier of Boise State 7-5, 6-4 in the round of 16. The matchup with the lefty played into King's hands.
"That was a matchup of a different sort," Lapidus said. "The guy was a lefthander and didn't move that well."
Although he went down a break early in the first, Lapidus said that King was in control of the match from the start.
In doubles action, Duke's lone team fell in second round action. Ludovic Walter and Jason Zimmermann won the first set, but their play deteriorated after taking an early lead. The pair ended a successful season with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 loss to Chris Brandi and Hamid Mirzadeh of Florida.
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"I think they played pretty well in the first and didn't play well in the second and third," Lapidus said. "They had a good year and they will be All-Americans based on that. For those guys we found a really good combination."