Hokie ClubBLACKSBURG – The 44th-ranked Virginia Tech men’s tennis team stunned No. 2 Duke on Sunday afternoon, claiming the 6-1 win over the Blue Devils on Sunday afternoon at the Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center in Blacksburg.
“This was a great win for our program,” said head coach Jim Thompson. “We were down a player in singles and for the guys to come in here and step up, really shows our depth. I’m proud of this team and the work that these guys put in everyday to be the best they can be.”
The Hokies (10-1, 2-0 ACC) got the first win in doubles as Edoardo Tessaro and Joao Monteiro teamed up on court three to defeat Bruno Semenzato and TJ Pura, 8-3.
Duke (13-2, 0-1 ACC) answered with the win on two where Josh Levine and Jason Tahir claimed the 8-4 win against Tech’s Hunter Koontz and Florian Nicoud.
The doubles decision came down to the match in the No.1. It was a close match, but the Blue Devils’ 11th-ranked Nicolas Alvarez and Raphael Hemmeler held on for the 8-5 win over Amerigo Contini and Andreas Bjerrehus.
Nicoud tied it all up for the Hokies as he defeated Levine in straight sets with scores of 6-1, 6-3 in the No. 5.
The Hokies took the lead on No. 6 with Aaron Gomez downing Pura. After a close opening set that went to a tiebreaker, 7-6(5), Gomez dominated in the second set, picking up the 6-0 shutout.
In the No. 1, Tech’s 74th-ranked Bjerrehus pulled out the upset over No. 8 Alvarez. The two played a close opening set, going into a tiebreaker in which Bjerrehus got out to the 5-2 lead. Alvarez answered tying it up at 7-7, but Bjerrehus scored back-to-back points to win it 7-6 (7). In the second set, Alvarez went on top 3-1, but Bjerrehus won the next two points to tie it up. The two were tied again at 4-4 before Bjerrehus took the final points securing it 6-4.
The clinching match came in the No. 4 where Tessaro squared off against Semenzato. The Tech player took the first set 6-3, but Semenzato answered for the 6-4 win in the second. In the final set, Tessaro got out to a 3-1 lead, but Semenzato rallied to tie it up at 3-3. The two were tied again at 5-5 before Tessaro notched the final two points, 7-5, clinching the match for the Hokies.
Koontz won a tiebreaker in the opening set against No. 99 Hemmeler, defeating the Blue Devil player 7-6(5). Hemmeler came back for a win in the second, 6-4. Koontz controlled the final set, securing the match 6-3.
In the final match, Monteiro dropped the opening set to No. 32 Tahir, 6-4. Monteiro answered to knot the match, winning the second set 6-3. The final set was a battle between the two as they tied on every point and were knotted at 6-6 to force the tiebreaker. Neither player let up as there were five ties with the last at 7-7. Monteiro took the final two points, 7-6(7) to complete the sweep in singles.
The win over the Blue Devils marks one of the biggest in program history and the best win for the #Hokies since joining the ACC.
The Hokies will be back on the court on Friday, March 13 when they host Boston College at 1:30 p.m. at the Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center.
Singles
1. #74 Andreas Bjerrehus (VT) def. #8 Nicolas Alvarez (DU) 7-6 (7), 6-4
2. Joao Monteiro (VT) def. #32 Jason Tahir (DU) 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7)
3. Hunter Koontz (VT) def. #99 Raphael Hemmeler (DU) 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-3
4. Edoardo Tessaro (VT) def. Bruno Semenzato (DU) 6-3, 4-6, 7-5
5. Florian Nicoud (VT) def. Josh Levine (DU) 6-1 6-3
6. Aaron Gomez (VT) def. TJ Pura (DU) 7-6 (5), 6-0
Order of finish: 5,6,1,4,3,2
Doubles
1. #11 Alvarez/Hemmeler (DU) def. Bjerrehus/Contini (VT) 8-5
2. Levine/Tahir (DU) def. Koontz/Nicoud (VT) 8-4
3. Monteiro/Tessaro (VT) def. Pura/Semenzato (DU) 8-3
Order of finish: 3,2,1