No. 1. On one hand, it brings prestige, the title of “the best.” On the other hand, it brings pressure and the expectations that come with being the best.
No. 10 Duke (16-8, 7-2 in the ACC) came into this season with the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation. And if you ask people around the courts, they’ll tell you the Blue Devil freshmen haven’t disappointed.
“It’s hard to really know what you have with freshmen until they get on campus,” head coach Ramsey Smith said. “You watch them at juniors, and obviously all three were very good players, but everyone adapts to college tennis a little bit differently, and I think all three of them have exceeded any expectations.”
Chris Mengel, Fred Saba and Cale Hammond composed Duke’s class of 2010. Saba came ranked No. 1 overall according to the Tennis RPI rankings. Mengel stepped on campus ranked 10th, and Hammond was ranked No. 40.
“I knew that Fred and Chris were going to play singles and be in the lineup,” Smith said. “But right now they’re playing three and four, two of our more solid spots, and they’ve done unbelievably.”
It’s hard to overstate how important the three have been to the Blue Devils this season. Mengel—playing primarily out of the third position—has gone 27-10 overall in singles play, trailing only No. 6 Henrique Cuhna and No. 9 Reid Carleton on Duke’s squad in wins.
Saba has settled in at the fourth position and is right behind Mengel with a 25-14 record in singles play. He is 7-2 in ACC play.
Even Hammond—who didn’t start the season in the lineup—has played more than expected. In doubles play with Torsten Weitoska, Hammond owns a 6-2 record in dual match play.
The transition, though, hasn’t been without its share of bumps. Mengel cited dropping the pivotal match of a 4-3 loss to Michigan in February as a low point. Losing two to Pepperdine and California during a trip over spring break was Saba’s most disappointing part of the season.
“It’s a long season,” Mengel said. “I don’t think I quite realized how long this season was, but it’s a marathon, not a sprint. Physically, I was pretty beat up playing a couple matches a week for an extended period of time. It was something I had to get used to for sure.”
Mengel is 9-1 in his last 10 singles matches and is currently riding a four-match winning streak. Saba is 7-3 and has taken his last three. Both won their respective matches Wednesday at Chapel Hill despite the team falling to No. 19 North Carolina 4-3.
“I knew we had top 10 potential,” Smith said. “I don’t think anyone is looking forward to playing us because when we’re clicking, we’re tough to beat.”
That potential will be tested this weekend as the Blue Devils host Florida State (9-11, 4-5) today, and Miami (14-5, 8-1) on Sunday at Ambler Stadium. Currently tied for third in the ACC with Georgia Tech and North Carolina, Duke will most likely ensure a spot in the top four and a bye in the ACC Tournament if it beats both teams this weekend.
“We need these this weekend,” Mengel said. “We need to take care of business and bounce back from Carolina.”
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