Coach's Corner - Josh Goffi

This is a little out of the norm for me to be writing our team blog but I think there is good reason. We lost today to the Florida State Seminoles (FSU) 5-0. That's right Duke fans, 5-0. Shocking. Well that's what the papers say at least.  All you need to know is that the boys were points away from winning that match 4-1. We just came up short in the clutch this time and that's okay. It is going to come, I can promise you that. So here is the thing, I am not going to write to you about what happened today but rather what didn't happen.

Penn State only has 4 indoor courts. So, after we lost a doubles point where we had match points to win, singles matches 1-4 went on and 5 and 6 had to wait for an open court. Unfortunately, we were not able to complete the matches at 5 and 6 because the FSU coaches didn't want their players to possibly get injured so they decided to pull them when the match was clinched. Therefore, they defaulted those spots giving the match the final score of 5-2 with Torsten and Holland picking up the retirement victories. In my opinion, as a coach, that is unacceptable and all four players involved lost an opportunity to become better as a player but more importantly to grow as a person.  

Tennis is the greatest sport in the world for one reason, it is the ultimate teacher. The character that one builds from this game is priceless. The opportunities to grow are endless but they are all disguised as daunting challenges. As players, we have to confront them and embrace them and that is not easy to do at all. Today, Torsten and Holland missed out on an opportunity to challenge their self pride and professionalism. When no one was watching and the outcome didn't really matter, they still needed to perform their jobs with the highest level of professionalism yet that opportunity was stolen from them. 

Try to follow me here because this is where I go off on my rant about a few of the life lessons you can learn through tennis... Humility is an ongoing lesson because tennis is like a roller coaster, the highs and lows are never ending throughout a set, match, career, etc. When you feel on top of the world, there is an inevitable low lurking around the corner and vice versa. If you undertand this then the highs won't be so high and the lows won't be so low.  Another is courage. We encounter self doubt all of the time on the court. When you are uncertain about yourself and your abilities, you still have to push through and do the right thing. Perspective is another. You learn not to panic because nothing ever happens the way you planned, so don't panic…ADAPT! And my personal favorite, it teaches you how to dig deep. Most people don't know how deep they can dig mentally and/or physically and most might not see the relevance this has to life but to me it is extremely important. With this self-awareness, you can walk into any situation and feel like you can find a way to get through it somehow, no matter what. You never panic, you just adapt. I can go on and on with situations that mimic everyday life… 

If you really think about it, how many times have you felt these emotions or been in situations like I just described above? On the court? Off of the court? Personally, just in this past week I encountered all of them and most importantly, dealt with them. If you take the situations that tennis presents to you head on, it creates a confidence (not to be confused with arrogance) that can get you through life. Most tennis players are very successful in life after their tennis careers and I say most because not all fully take on the challenges that tennis presents. 

This sport is fantastic and we are all blessed because every level of playing presents challenges. I know you can relate to these situations on and off the court just like the pros, so dive in and embrace these opportunities. If you are just starting tennis, stick with it because it's the greatest.

Hope you were able to follow me... 

Thanks for reading,

Josh

Insert Creative Title Here

You haven't truly experienced Duke unless you walk around at 7 AM on a Saturday; it gives new meaning to the word 'deserted.' But our 10 o'clock match required an early warm-up, and our dear coach, Jamie Ashworth, wanted us to be "alert and ready to go," which in my case, means waking up a minimum of 3 hours before the start of a match. Sometimes, even that doesn't really work. As motivation (or BRIBERY) for waking up at this atrocious hour, we were treated to a breakfast buffet at the Washington Duke...I don't speak for the whole team here, but the combination of "breakfast" and "buffet" never bodes well to my dietary habits. After eating an assortment of approximately 2 danishes, a croissant, an omelet, a muffin, and an infinite number of french toasts, we were ready to get started.

Unfortunately, there was a slight flaw to our morning: Amanda, our favorite bubbly teammate, was conspicuously absent from our group. She had woken up this morning with some kind of a ridiculous stomach virus, and had to go to the training room to get an IV...it was pretty apparent that she would be in no shape to play today. This presented us with a pretty hefty quandary: with the absence of Amanda, we only had 5 healthy players to take the court. Hmmmmmmm. Solution? TARA IYER SAVES THE DAY!!!

That's right, Tara was the hero of the day, as she teamed up with Amanda's usual partner Melissa (a.k.a Isamel, but noone really calls her that) to win their doubles match 8-3, after literally not having hit a ball for AT LEAST a few months. It wasn't particularly spectacular, due to the obvious inhibition of movement on Tara's part, but they totally got the job done, and it gave our whole team a boost. Adding Melissa and Tara's win to the pure destruction that Ellah and I produced on court 3, we ended up winning the doubles point to start off the match. On court 2, Mal (OUR LITTLE BABY FRESHMAN!!!) and Jess were also dominating, and were up 6-3 before the doubles point was won. Oh, and this would probably be a good time to mention WHO exactly we were playing: the VCU Rams.

Next came singles....since I was technically playing tennis and not paying attention at the beginning, I didn't manage to keep track of everyone's score, except for Jess', since I am perpetually hypnotized by the barrage of volleys and overheads that always seem to be occurring on her court. She got down an early break, but then battled back to win the first set 6-4. Meanwhile, our amazing adorable freshman MALLORY had done a little something I would term BEASTLINESS and won her match 6-1, 6-0. I was the second one off the court (by literally 2 milliseconds) and won 6-0, 6-0, to the utter dismay of my opponent, who seemed particularly flustered by the incredible shanks I managed to produce on the run. With those two wins, we went up 3-0, and only needed one more win to clinch! At this point, it seemed that Ellah, Melissa, and Jess were determined to keep us in suspense and vie for that all-important clinching honor. Ellah happened to be the one to do it, keeping the foot stomps to a minimum, and won her match 6-0, 6-4. That second set was a little tighter, maybe due to the fact that her opponent's grunts got continually more annoying as the match progressed. With the match won, Melissa and Jess were the last two on court. Melissa had a temporary out-of-body experience when she was up 5-2, (you know what I'm talking about, we've ALL done it) but returned to her body just in time, to win the second set 7-6. Jess, or Robocop as Jay called her today, continued her onslaught of netness, hitting 20 million volleys and overheads in the last 6 games, and took the second set 6-1.

sooooo, to sum the day up:

Duke: 6 VCU: 1

Great success!

till next time............

-REKA

Behind the Strings by Steve Carrow

What started out four years ago as a way to make some extra money to offset the alarming rate of “daycare” has now evolved into a very fulfilling part of my life – Stringing for Duke Tennis.

On an average day, I’ll wake at 5:20am dress for the gym and load up the car with my “work attire “, a very large bag full of last night’s stringing labors and head out for Sheffield Tennis Center.  After arrival, I’ll “restock” the “completed bins” in the men’s and women’s locker room and head off for a quick workout, followed by a day of my “day job” (as a Project Manager for Duke).  Then on my return trip home, I’ll swing back by Sheffield to pick up a new allotment from the “to be strung bins”.   After dinner and family time, I retire to my stringing room and turn on CNN or ESPN to listen to (depending on the day/season) and begin my second career.  Depending on the load, usually one to four hours of work on these weekdays along with added time on Saturdays and Sundays usually gets me caught up with demand.  I do manage to slip in five to seven hours of sleep each night also, contrary to what Ramsey will tell you, and then the process starts all over again.

As glamorous as that sounds, it’s really NOT the fulfilling part.  No the part that makes it all worthwhile (aside from the check once a month) is the interaction with this amazing group of young adults and coaches.  First the kids, sure, we like to call them “kids”, but they’re so much more.  Day in and day out I get to see them up close, working together for a common goal and having a youthful energy and lighthearted fun attitude all the while.  Like siblings, they pick on one another and compete amongst themselves on and off the court.  But also like birth brothers and sisters, they stick up for each other from outsiders with a bond of loyalty that can only be described as “family”.  The personalities and nationalities are as diverse as you might expect from a University called simply “Duke”.  But the cohesion of a team among this group brings this simple North Carolina native to truly believe that “world peace” could most certainly be attainable some day, but for a common goal.

As a tennis fan, I’m amazed at both their physical and mental skills of the game, but as a support member of these teams, I’m most proud of their character.  Any predated preconceived notions of elitist “Duke” arrogance, has been replaced with the reality of true moral sincerity.  Sure they’re all intelligent and the fact that they’re also division one athletes test my notions of divine fairness when it comes to the distributions from the gene pool .  But any resentment towards the genetic gods is soon dissipated when I witness the work ethic and the stress toll of a work load of academics and athletics at the highest level possible.  Add to that the ingrained pressures of being an adolescent in 2009 and envy is soon replaced with empathy (except when they’re on a road trip to Hawaii).  It’s the mastery of the life balance and commitment to excellence in all of those areas that I most admire from this group of student athletes.   I’m really glad through these blogs that you (the fans) get to see what fine individuals these young adults are.  They’re really worthy of your support and I know firsthand how much they genuinely appreciate it!

As for the coaches, what can I say except WOW?  They sign up for the jobs of mentor, teacher, friend, boss, disciplinarian, coordinator, travel agent, maid, role model and the list goes on and on.  Couple that with the responsibilities and accountabilities of answering to the parents, fans, staff, alumni and Athletic director and you’ve got a recipe for stress with a side order of “you get to work nights, holidays  and weekends away from home”.  Still thinking they’ve got it made because they get to coach tennis for a living?  Consider this, during the season the teams only get one day off a week and don’t forget that you have to keep one eye on the global domain of recruiting all the while.  But even with all of those trials and pressures they still make it fun, after all, it’s still a game right?  Come to any match and you’ll see the results of these amazingly talented and committed individuals who are simply, the best in the business.  Former standouts themselves, they know firsthand the pressures and challenges facing their teams and impressively meet them head on, conquer them and make it look as smooth as the strokes they perfect each day.  But the really impressive part is that they not only endure this process, but embrace it.  Ask any one of them if they would rather be doing something else and without hesitation the answer is always an emphatic no!   Tennis is a remarkable sport that brings together people that otherwise might never cross paths.  It’s my honor to be involved with this outstanding group of dynamic and impeccable people and my pleasure to share these views from inside with you the fans.  

As always, thanks for your support and for joining us on this journey.  Hold on tight – it’s going to be a fun ride, full of mains, crosses and some perfect tension for just the right feel at impact.

Dylan Arnould- Nostalgic and Feeling Good

For me, Saturday’s match against VCU (Virginia Commonwealth University) brought back some old memories and familiarly good feelings afterwards.  As a team we posted a very solid and overwhelming performance, bettering the VCU Rams by a score of 6-1.  And why was I feeling nostalgic?  Probably because VCU was the second team I ever played against in my collegiate dual match career almost exactly two years ago, but probably even more so because former Duke Tennis alumni Peter Rodrigues 07’, David Goulet 08’, and Alex Stone 08’ were all in attendance, all of whom I played on the team with, and all of whom drove a long distance to be there.

The doubles started off really close and with us down a break on two of the three courts.  Al and Kiril we doing well keeping their opponents at the number one position, but Reid and I were struggling to find a groove and Torsten and Holland were in a close fight at line three.  But we battled back well at positions two and three, most impressively with Holland and Torsten fighting off a match point to come back and win their match in a tiebreaker.  Reid and I ended up losing shortly after the doubles point was clinched, though it was of no consequence to the overall outcome and we had done well to come back and stay alive for the sake of alleviating some of the pressure on the freshmen duo.  Big props to them for fighting back and coming up big, and also to Al and Kiril for a really hard earned win at number one.

Our singles warm-ups were subject to a new innovation in player introductions thanks to Mike Gagnon (the invaluable Director of Clinical Operations and Planning for Surgery at the Duke Medical Center who has donated his time and energy to helping both the men’s and women’s tennis teams) who offered pro basketball intros that helped get things started and revved up the energy level. After battling back in the doubles to take a 1-0 lead in the overall score, there was no let up as we got out to first set leads on nearly every court right away.  I was actually on serve throughout most of my first set, but as I glanced at the Goldstein scoreboard I saw we were dominating on almost every other court.  Torsten was next to me playing well and smothering his opponent, and on the other side of me Reid was off to a fast start and it seemed improbable that his opponent would be able to successfully fight back.  Kiril was playing well and providing some great fire for the rest of us, as even though I was unable to see much of his match I heard quite a few of his “Go Duke!” yells.  I got off early enough to see the last few games of Pinsky’s match which he closed out confidently with some crowd pleasing shot making.  Al had the upper hand on his scrappy opponent throughout most of the match until a hard fought set didn’t go his way, and then was unfortunate to have to concede to playing an always unpredictable super tiebreaker to decide the match, which he narrowly lost.

It was a great feeling afterwards and all among us were pleased, especially our coach Mr. Josh Goffi who was celebrating his 30th birthday in conjunction with our victory.  Spirits were high though and the crowd was awesome, with there being an awesome attendance turn out.  Among the attendees were such notables as Count Chocula, the Chicken, and if I’m not mistaken I believe the infamous Gorilla was there as well.  Most crucial though were the guys not playing that were providing the noise and support that makes such an incredibly huge difference.  It was a team effort between the ten of us and our famed coaching triumvirate in addition to the incredible crowd support that delivered the decisive victory. The atmosphere was great and I can’t wait for our next home match, which regrettably is not until we play a double header on March 4th before we then start up the ACC Season with N.C. State on March 18th.  Thanks to everyone that came out and supported us, you all made it such an awesome atmosphere to play in and showed what an advantage it is to have a supportive and plentiful home crowd.  We leave Thursday to head up to Penn State where we will play for a spot in the last sixteen of the Team National Indoor Championships on Saturday and Sunday (I’ll be really annoyed if we are scheduled so that we miss the Super Bowl).

Our first dual match!

We played our first dual match of the season against Old Dominion University yesterday. Understandably, the girls were all nervous, but exited at the same time. It had been more than eight months since we had officially competed as a team (the Fall season comprised of individual tournaments). Liz Plotkin and I could not play due to injury, and we were ready to cheer like crazy!

Our new freshman, Mallory Cecil was businesslike. She pulled back her long blond hair into a tight bun, and stepped onto the court with confidence. Jessi Robinson partnered Mal, and we watched them with eager anticipation. They made a great doubles team! After stuggling through (and winning) a loooooooooooong first game, they effortlessly demolished their opponets. The other doubles teams were more experienced, as the girls had played together last season. They played well, and led the team to the first point.

All this while, more and more people streamed in. They were ready to support the girls, and did so quite loudly! The singles started. Jess, Ellah Nze, Reka Z., and Melissa Mang played superb tennis in the beginning and steamrolled their opponents in the first set. Ellah's opponent, a feisty hitter, came back and even led in the second set. But Ellah, helped by the crowd, triumphed in the end. I must say, the Sprited Freshmen Luke Marchese and David Holland, and the Crazy Towel Guy, didn't exactly keep their voices low! A special thanks to them. Mallory and Amanda Granson were down in the beginning, but came back and dominated in the end. We won 7-0.

The experience was made even more memorable by the people who came to support the team yesterday. I would like to thank you all for watching, and hope you come to the rest of our home matches. You make it fun; we love you!

Thanks for reading,
Tara

The Magnificent 7-0

Our coaching “triumvirate” of Ramsey Smith, Josh Goffi, and KJ Hippensteel made their dual match debut this evening under the roof of Sheffield indoor tennis center. Everything they wore matched. The crisp jacket, the windpants, the shoes, the socks… their GQ-like attention to detail must have put fear into the sweatpants-clad Elon staff.  They looked, in a word, professional.

And so did the players (figuratively speaking, of course, — my 1998 Volvo was bought with my own money). We did such a “professional” job it was almost a little dull. On one end, you saw the Good German Torsten Wietoska slowly dismantle Phil Nemec’s Canadian net-rushing. On the other end, in a match that was just dying to be played on red clay, Alain Michel’s “Brasileiro” style slowly dragged down and strangled Alberto Rojas’s legendary grinding. And in the middle, Reid Carleton and his background chorus of soccer player fans made Damon Gooch’s evening a nightmare — sweet revenge from last weekend. Pinsky, Kiril, and Dylan all dominated. As Lil' Wayne’s voice blasted through the speakers announcing our triumph, everyone but our guests from across the state left the building satisfied.

There were still some moments of drama. They may not have known it, but Dylan and Alain were playing match-clinching points at the same time. Dylan won his match approximately 2 seconds before Al, giving him the honor of first clinch of the year.

In the locker room afterwards, one didn’t really know what to criticize. Doubles were fiery and the breaks came early and often. Outside of a couple tough first sets, singles went pretty smoothly. At least this time (and hopefully the first of many), we went out and accomplished close to what we set out to do. It was a job well done from all aspects of the program.

I guess good things happen when a certain member of your team is reading “The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists.” It keeps our priorities straight.

However, tomorrow is a new day and Saturday night brings a new opponent, the highly ranked VCU Rams. We have quite a rivalry with these guys, especially after last year’s painful (particularly for me, as I lost the decider) 4-3 loss. It will be one of the most exciting home matches of the year. Saturday night indoor matches always have a great atmosphere and huge crowd and this should be no exception. There will be an absolute battle on the courts. Basketball tickets will be given away, and pizza will be eaten… at no charge. If you’re not there, you’re missing out on what is probably the best night of college tennis in North Carolina all year.

Thanks to everyone who came out and supported us tonight, and to everyone keeping up with the blog, 

Aaron 

The Battle of Tobacco Road

MLK Day – A Day to Celebrate

January 19, 2008 – MLK Day. More than 45 years ago, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech heard around the world. Every year on this day, the United States of America pays respect to a legend who advocated peace and equality. Despite the overwhelming sense of unity felt around the nation, there remained one hot spot, a tennis center to be specific, in which animosity and unadulterated hatred still thrived. On the third and final day of the Duke Invitational, the Battle of Tobacco Road unraveled under the lights of the Sheffield Tennis Center. Duke versus UNC – pride, honor, and most importantly, bragging rights were on the line.

Doubles play commenced with more intensity and fight than the two previous days combined. The international tandem of Al (Alain) and Kiril played an extremely well fought match but came up a bit short against a team who seemingly forgot how to miss a volley. Reid and Dylan prevailed in a close contest against their Tar Heel opponents through the winning combination of Reid’s deft volleys and Dylan’s burning desire to plow the ball straight through opponent’s chests. The freshmen duo of Torsten and Holland played a solid match demonstrating maturity and team chemistry well beyond their years. The “Dream Team” consisting of Carp and Pinsky put on a show for the crowd with a decisive 8-3 victory complete with eclectic shot making. At the completion of doubles action, Duke tallied 3 W’s while UNC garnered only 1.

Inside the locker room, energy as well as morale was high. The coaching staff of which I’ll refer to as the Duke Tennis Triumvirate (Smith, Goffi, and Hippensteel) was extremely pleased with our performance as well as our ability to match and ultimately surpass UNC’s energy. Nevertheless, the triumvirate issued sage advice by telling us not to get complacent and to come out even hungrier for singles. They reiterated that our UNC foes, despite an abysmal past two days, would still fight and compete because they were playing Duke. After the 10 minute intermission, the singles matches began. Right off the bat, things got heated as energy and emotions ran high.

As a person more inclined to numbers than words, I’ll first start off with the overall statistics. We won 5 out of the 8 singles matches which equates to 62.5% for those who fancy percentages. The Tar Heels were successful at the top positions, but the Duke Blue Devils dominated everywhere else. At the first spot, Reid unfortunately ran into a player who had signed up for the wrong tournament. His opponent, Donato, may have hit a plethora of winners, but lacked geography prowess to know that Melbourne was no where near Durham, North Carolina. Kiril, the Bulgarian sensation, competed extremely well but in the end, could not overcome his opponent’s lefty crosscourt forehand. However, this is where UNC’s success ended. To lead the way, Junior Dylan Arnould won a three setter while exhibiting true tenacity. During an extended rally in the first set, I was shocked as I looked over to see Mr. Arnould on the ground nursing his left ankle while grimacing in pain. In my three years at this institution, I’ve witnessed two catastrophic events and could only hope for the best. Relief spread among the Sheffield crowd as he finally got to his feet and gently walked to his bench. After receiving medical attention, the crowd applauded as he returned to the baseline to continue play. Arnould did drop the first set, but under the guidance of Mr. Hippensteel, Arnould would battle back in the second and would run away with the 3rd. In the other matches, Torsten played a great match against Crone of UNC. Despite Crone’s incessant approaches to net, Torsten utilized his superior German genes and came up with fantastic passing shots. I watched this match in its final stages and vividly remember one scene in particular. After Torsten aced Crone to obtain his first match point, Torsten pumped his fists and let out a roar that epitomized fighting spirit – David Hasselhoff pre-Wendy’s/YouTube would be most proud. On the other end of the center, Jared Pinsky made quick work of his Tar Heel opponent. Word on the street was that Mr. Pinsky heard the day’s cookies were the best of the weekend and well frankly, he couldn’t miss out. Holland, who was determined to take first place in time spent on court, once again was battling deep in a third set. Amidst the militia of UNC players heckling, Holland dug deep and triumphed once again. The other freshmen from New Jersey, Luke Marchese, channeled his hatred toward UNC by not only beating, but crushing his opponent. A man of few smiles, Marchese did have a big grin for this victory. The match that went the distance involved the Sao Paulo native, Al. His opponent, Ahari, notorious for getting in one’s face proved to be just that. Even I as a spectator knew I was in for the long haul after Ahari went wild after just the first point. Nevertheless, Al remained stoic and unfazed despite these antics. Sure enough Al confidently took the first set 6-3 which, much to my relief, temporarily quieted Ahari. The second set was closely contested as Al had two match points. On the second match point, Al decided to end the match with an exclamation point as he attempted to win the point with a drop shot. Unfortunately, this exclamation point would soon turn into ellipses as Ahari would go on to win the point and eventually the set. In the third and final set, Al came up a bit short due to the combination of the weekend’s fatigue as well as better play from his opponent.

All in all, this weekend was a success as we dominated all three days of play. Additionally, Junior Dylan Arnould receives accolades as he earned the most points and thus won the singles contest of the Duke Invitational. The Duke Tennis Triumvirate congratulated everyone on a great weekend and was extremely excited to get the season underway.

Finally, as an engineer, I’m accustomed to succinct statistics that capture the entire weekend in one glance. I have formulated them and they are as follows:

Statistics

· Matches Won: 32

· Matches Lost: 8

· Winning Percentage: 80%

· Duke > UNC

I want to personally thank everyone who came out to support us this weekend.

Thanks for tuning in and enjoy the Inauguration (and snow)

David Lue

Liz Plotkin-Last Day in Michigan

Depending on who is reading this you may or may not know that I have been struggling with a knee injury for the past year. Therefore, I will be writing about the matches I watched.

We faced Michigan in doubles and Vandy in singles on our last day of competition in Michigan. It FINALLY warmed up to 18 degrees on our last day there which made it much more bearable. The tennis improved as well. It was great to see everyone get more comfortable playing and most of the singles matches were won fairly easily. The doubles matches on the other hand were both very close. Amanda and Melissa pulled out a really close one 9-7. Ellah and Reka lost in a a nail bitter but had a ton of really great points. Overall, this weekend was a great start to the season. My teammates were able to get some really good matches and I truly enjoyed watching them. I'm looking forward to our first dual match later this week!

Dylan Arnould- Act II from The Gothic Wonderland

Day two of the Duke Invitational brought with it more inspiring results and performances from the Duke Men’s Tennis Team against the ETSU (Eastern Tennessee State University) Buccaneers, along with some more excellent cuisine catered courtside (It’s just a shame that normal on-campus dining can’t measure up).  After a total of thirteen matches – four doubles and nine singles – we finished with a dominating 8-1 record in singles play, with a slightly less impressive 2-2 split in the doubles action.

The day got started on a slightly different note, with Al providing a new warm-up CD intended to surpass the inspiration that Luke’s heavily hip-hop inspired mix did for us on day one.  A more dance and techno influenced compilation infused with some hip-hop favorites from the previous day, I’ll put my personal opinions aside and just say that I suppose it’s difficult to argue with the performance results that came afterwards…

The doubles got off to a mixed start, with Carp and I offering some instances of solid and disciplined doubles play at the number four position, though unable to adequately consolidate on service breaks, and ultimately going down.  Reid and Torsten started out on fire at the number two slot and seemed destined to overwhelm their Buccaneer opponents, but a few close games and bad breaks disrupted their very sound play early on.  Alain and Kiril proved their reliability and grit as a doubles team once again, proving too determined and fired up for the number one duo they were facing, a rather dangerous and talented team if I may say so.  Pinksy and Holland were too far away for me to see much, but they took care of their opponents in a close 8-6 match.

We headed into the locker feeling pretty good about of our play despite failing to dominate the doubles like we did the day before.  The reality was that this team was a cut above the Elon squad we faced the day before.  Nevertheless we refocused in the locker room and headed back out to provide some impressive singles play, though perhaps more so in the way we took care of our matches and did all the little things than simply ball striking or flare.  What we lacked in flash and grandeur we made up for with discipline, competitiveness, focus and tough play.  Ramsey, Josh, and K.J. remarked to us in our post match briefing on how we wore down our opponents and broke their spirits, not only winning our matches but leaving our adversaries feeling completely defeated.  We’re hoping to make that a habit for all teams paying a visit to the Gothic Wonderland this year.

Singles wrap-up (from what I was able to actually see of everyone…)

My match started with some rough patches in the first set, with my eventually getting back on serve after being down a break and then breaking a second time to then serve out the set.  After that it was a matter of keeping him from getting back up, which I was thankfully able to do and allowed me to get off the court a little quicker than the previous day.  My neighboring teammate Torsten stepped up his level a couple of notches today, putting behind him some early bumps to get grooved and physically overwhelm his opponent with heavy balls and net attacks.  He also literally left sweat and blood on the court when he managed to fall yet again and reopen a wound on his fingers.  This misfortune was on top of his undoubtedly feeling a bit intimidated by how vocal and loud I was being on the court next to him…Kiril battled their number one player Enrique Olivares from Venezuela, ultimately coming up short, but as he related to me after the match, the difference was merely a few big points that didn’t go his way.  Reid overcame his somewhat off day to win the first set against his opponent and then run away rather comfortable with the second.  The few glimpses I did catch reminded me of my aspiration to one day make half as many crazy gets as him.  I hear Al (Alain) performed extremely well, though I saw almost nothing of his match, as he was on the other end of the Sheffield Indoor Center and finished before me. Holland showed some great heart, pulling out a tight three set match on a day that was certainly not his best.  Pinsky took care of business and slid lefty serves and smacked early returns to dispose of his opponent rather tidily.  Carp’s balls had too much depth and he drilled enough down the line backhands to manhandle his opponent similar to day one. Luke battled back from a set down to force a third set, until whoops a 10 point super tie breaker was played in lieu of a third, but which he buckled down to take 10-8. 

 Tomorrow we’ve got our rivals from 8 miles down the road, the North Carolina Tar Heels.  Irrespective of some recent struggles, their hatred of Duke is only perhaps surpassed by ours for them.  Needless to say it should be an awesome prelude to our real showdown to come at the end of March.  May the visiting Tar Heels be sent packing and the bellows of “Go Heels” be obscured by the screams (which I will surely be leading in both quantity and decibels) of “Go Duke”!

 Thank for your interest and support,

 Dylan Arnould

Jess Robinson-Alrighty...Day 2!

So even though “Opposite day” isn’t officially until the 25th of this month (yes, it is a holiday) the duke women’s tennis team had pretty close to our own little opposite day: after cruising through both doubles matches yesterday, our teams struggled today and lost to two very aggressive Tennessee teams. Our wins in singles flipped as well, Reka and I very gratefully got our first wins of the spring under our belts while Amanda and Ellah lost a couple of tough battles against some solid Michigan players. And then there’s Melissa…our shining singles star. Two days brought two very convincing wins for our beloved senior, who every time I looked over was smashing another forehand down-the-line.

The first tournament back after the holidays is always a bit of a shock to the system- everyone woke up pretty sore this morning. Thankfully, our amazing trainer, Jennie, is here to help with all of our little aches and pains so we can finish up strong tomorrow. After two tough days of matches, dinner was pretty quiet tonight – that is, at the start of dinner. Dessert seemed to spark some excitement though- more for some than for others. When I say some I mean Reka, who desperately wants me to make note of the fact that she polished off two sizeable desserts practically all on her own – good thing her style of play calls for plenty of running!!
Until tomorrow then…..GO DUKE!

Aaron Carpenter- Sunrise at Sheffield

The hour long rallies of Kiril Dimitrov. Jared Pinsky effortlessly poaching off a return for a clean winner. The oddly disgusting taste of a mix of a Bruegger’s Bagel and a purple Gatorade in your mouth. “Ah”, I thought, “This is what Duke Tennis is all about.”

            Today was the first day of the Duke Invitational— a “hidden dual” round robin tournament that counts for only individual (not team) rankings and, more or less, gets the season started. It’s quite an event. Everyone on the team gets to play singles and doubles we’re all chomping at the bit to get out there to jockey for position and get match-tough. Our first round was against a team from just down I-40— The Elon Phoenix.

            It’s hard to find fault with the results. We lost one doubles match to a very “on”, line one team and only dropped a set in the singles, which is a good sign considering we play them in our opening home match on Thursday. Though I’m perfectly satisfied with the way I played, my match was a little too dramatic for my tastes.

            My opponent, Clark Howell, came out crushing forehands left and right, shocking me into a state where all I could do was try to get the ball back somewhere close to the backhand, try to keep my chin up, and hope for Andy Roddick’s soul to try to leave his body.

            My coach for the match, Mr. Josh Goffi, agreed. We sat at bench at 3-2 Elon in the first and discussed how things were going.

            “This guy’s playing well,” he opened.

            “ Yeah, I don’t know what’s going on. Things just aren’t clicking right now, man. I don’t know if I’m playing a little tight or what. I just gotta get back into it, you know?”

            Anxiety was a little high. I was down a break for crissakes!

            “ Yeah… yeah… I think if you just make him hit, say, one more ball each rally this guy is gonna come crashing down pretty quick,” he prophesized. He was correct— ten games and a good deal more unforced errors on the opposite end of the court later, I was looking at Duke 6-3,6-0 on the scoreboard. Now I could just lie down on my bed, have dinner, and write this blog for the rest of the day.

            Other matches were more exciting and, I dare say, more expertly played. Reid battled it and won out against a ranked opponent at line one. Kiril clamped down and drowned his opponent in a never-ending barrage of topspin. Dylan hit the ball hard, unsurprisingly. Pinsky won his roller-coaster of a match and rewarded himself with a fresh chocolate chip cookie afterwards. Torsten proved German tennis is still alive. David Holland got a win against a great grinder. David Lue got through a tough first set to run away with the second and Luke Marchese had a win against an opponent who simply forgot how to miss a forehand. However, his greatest victory of the day was his highly inspirational and alarmingly “gangsta” warm-up CD, which gave us all more motivation than is perhaps healthy.

            Tomorrow we take on ETSU, which should be a very hard-fought match. A lot of us played them in the fall and had very good matches. We’ll keep you posted on how everything turns out from this tournament and the rest of the season.

Thanks for reading,
Aaron Carpenter

Melissa Mang-First Day Jitters

Today was our first match of the Spring! We played a mock dual match meaning we played two teams- Tennessee in singles and then Vanderbilt in doubles. Everyone seemed a little nervous and there were some tough matches but overall we did really great- sometimes the hardest part is just getting through that first day. My match went 7-6, 7-5 but it definitely should not have been that close- I let a few key game points slip away, giving her more momentum. My serve carried me through the match though, giving me a lot of free points and confidence. 

We played awesome in our two doubles matches, finishing up the day on a really positive note! It snowed like 4-5 inches while we were playing and Jamie has been having fun fishtailing in the rental, but so far no snow ball fights have broken out...we'll see how long that lasts. We're looking forward to having another good day tomorrow!

I'll be back soon.

Michigan - COLD!

This is our first night in the cold state of Michigan. It is an impressive 0 degrees with a windchill of -16. The air hurts your lungs when you walk outside. The great thing about Ann Arbor though...the people. Despite the weather, I love the Midwest. We went to the world famous Zingerman's restaurant for lunch, and dinner with a Duke Tennis Alum, Susan Summerville. Her four cute daughters came to the courts dressed in the their Duke gear to watch the girls hit. We have royal blue spreading across the country!

The Michigan Invitational starts tomorrow. We are up against Tennessee in singles and Vanderbilt in doubles action. GO DUKE!

Welcome to Duke Tennis

Welcome to The Duke Tennis Blog. After every match, we will have one player from each team post a blog with their thoughts on the team's performance and also their own. We are hoping that it will give you, the fan, an insider's view of how the match went.