The Blue Devils will look to finish off a strong fall season as they compete in their final tournaments before looking toward a grueling spring schedule that features several conference dual matches.
This weekend, Duke will be sending five players to compete in the USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championship and the Dick Vitale Clay Court Classic. For the Blue Devils, Jason Tahir will play in the ITA Indoor Championship and Raphael Hemmeler, Bruno Semenzato, TJ Pura and Josh Levine will compete in the Dick Vitale Classic.
Nicolas Alvarez also qualified for the ITA National Indoors, but was forced to withdraw earlier this week due to illness.
“Nicolas Alvarez also qualified but unfortunately, he was diagnosed with mono,” head coach Ramsey Smith said. “But it sounds like it’s a mild case [of mono], and hopefully he’ll be back soon.”
Smith will be joining Tahir at the ITA Indoor Championship to coach the senior and assistant coach Jonathan Stokke to lead the Blue Devils competing in the Dick Vitale Classic.
The ITA Indoor Championship will be held at the National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y., and will feature some of the best collegiate tennis players in the country, including No. 1 Sebastian Stiefelmeyer of Louisville and No. 2 Yannick Hanfmann of Southern California.
Tahir will play unseeded Henry Craig of Denver in the first round at 9:00 a.m. Thursday.
“For [Tahir], it gives him a chance to compete against the very best players in the country,” Smith said, “It’s the top 32 players from [the college circuit], really the top schools’ number-one players, so it will really give him an opportunity to compete at the highest level. It’s a unique experience for him because it’s his senior year, and he has never made this event before.”
Meanwhile, Stokke will bring four players south to the Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club in Bradenton, Fla., for the Dick Vitale Classic, one of the few collegiate tennis tournaments that is played on clay.
“It’s a really well-run tournament with a lot of great players and great schools, and the only tournament we play, fall or spring, that is on clay, so it’s a little bit different," Smith said. "Our international guys, like Hemmler and Semenzato are a little more comfortable on clay, so I expect them to do well.”
In doubles, Hemmler and Semenzato will play together as Duke’s first pair, with Pura and Levine representing Duke as the team’s second duo. All four players will compete in singles in addition to playing in twosomes.
The highlight of the tournament for the players, however, will not consist of winners or aces, but rather the closing dinner Saturday night.
“Dick Vitale, at the end of the tournament, hosts an amazing banquet for all the players and coaches, at which our guys are always warmly received," Smith said. "Dickie V loves his Dukies.”
The two tournaments will cap off the Blue Devils’ fall season. They will return to play Jan. 4 for the Hills Hawaii Trip in Waikiki, Hawaii.
“We have had a couple weeks off since the regionals, so we have been able to work really hard on specific things for each [of our players]," Smith said. "We look to [perform well] at both of these great tournaments, as we try to end our so far successful fall season on a high note.”
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Jacob Weiss is a Trinity senior. His column, "not jumping to any conclusions," runs on alternate Fridays.