Wake Forest University
Duke
No. 3 Duke Takes Down Wake Forest 6-1
3/2/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
March 2, 2011
DURHAM, N.C. - The Wake Forest women's tennis team got wins from the top singles and doubles positions but fell 6-1 to No. 3 Duke on Wednesday afternoon at Ambler Stadium in Durham, N.C.
The No. 73 Demon Deacons drop to 2-5 (0-2 ACC) while the Blue Devils improve to 9-2 (1-0 ACC).
17th-ranked Kathryn Talbert and Kayla Duncan picked up Wake's only doubles victory at No. 1, taking down Nadine Fahoum and Hanna Mar 8-7 (5). At No. 1 singles, No. 45 Martina Pavelec picked up her best win of the season, defeating 39th-ranked Fahoum.
"I thought that overall we played pretty well today," said head coach Jeff Wyshner. "Duke has a lineup full of ranked players and we hung with them in most of the matches. Martina's win and the doubles win by Kathryn and Kayla came against very solid opponents."
The final score did not do the match justice. The Demon Deacons played the Blue Devils tight in singles, winning the first set in two matches and staying close in two others. Duke's deep lineup, in which every singles player is ranked nationally, eventually proved to be too much, especially at the bottom of the lineup as the clinching wins came at No. 6, No. 5 and No. 3.
Duke took an early lead by winning the doubles point. The Blue Devils grabbed ahold of No. 3 doubles from the start cruised to an 8-2 win. At No. 2, Emilee Malvehy and Ryann Cutillo put up a good fight but could never quite get into a rhythm, falling 8-5 to Rachel Kahan and Ellah Nze to give Duke the doubles point.
At the time, Kayla Duncan and Kathryn Talbert led Nadine Fahoum and Hanna Mar 6-5 at No. 1, but neither team could break in the next few games, sending the match to a tiebreak at 7-7. The Deacs fell behind 5-3 in the tiebreak, but rallied to win three straight points, earning a match point at 6-5. The Deacs looked to have the point won on an angled volley, but the Blue Devils threw up a lob that landed on the baseline. Talbert chased the ball down, lobbing it back and then charged to the net where she smashed a volley down the line to give the Deacons an 8-7 win. Duncan and Talbert improve to 7-2 this season and 2-0 in ACC play.
The Deacons showed that they would not go down easily in singles from the outset. No. 45 Pavelec jumped out to a 5-1 lead at No. 1, taking the first set 6-3 over No. 38 Nadine Fahoum. Talbert took the first set off of Ellah Nze at No. 2. But both of the Blue Devils would rally to win the second set, sending the top two matches to a deciding third frame.
Duke took a 2-0 lead in the match with a 6-1, 6-1 win at No. 6. Rachal Kahan took down Ryann Cutillo 7-5, 6-0 at No. 5 to put the Blue Devils on the verge of clinching, and No. 9 Reka Zsilinszka took the deciding point at No. 3, grinding down Kayla Duncan 6-1, 6-0.
Elizabeth Plotkin defeated Emilee Malvehy in two tight 6-4 sets at No. 4, and Nze completed her comeback at No. 2, defeating Talbert 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 for Duke's sixth point, leaving No. 1 singles as the lone remaining match.
Pavelec jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the final set, but Fahoum broke back to even the match at 3-3. From there, it would be all Demon Deacons. Pavelec started painting the lines with her groundstrokes, taking the next three games to win the match 6-3, 2-6, 6-3. The Stuttgart, Germany native has now defeated five ranked opponents this season, the most of any Wake Forest player.
The Deacs will have only a day to prepare for their next match which comes at home this Friday against Richmond. The match is set to start at 2:30 p.m. and will be played at Leighton Stadium, weather permitting.
For up-to-the minute Wake Forest tennis news, follow the Deacs on Twitter @WakeTennis or twitter.com/WakeTennis
#3 Duke 6, #73 Wake Forest 1
Singles
1. #45 Martina Pavelec (WF) def. #39 Nadine Fahoum (DU) 6-3, 2-6, 6-3
2. #74 Ellah Nze (DU) def. Kathryn Talbert (WF) 4-6, 6-4, 6-1
3. #9 Reka Zsilinszka (DU) def. Kayla Duncan (WF) 6-1, 6-0
4. #71 Elizabeth Plotkin (DU) def. #118 Emilee Malvehy (WF) 6-4, 6-4
5. #56 Rachel Kahan (DU) def. Ryann Cutillo (WF) 7-5, 6-0
6. #55 Mary Clayton (DU) def. Anna Mydlowska (WF) 6-1, 6-1
Doubles
1. #17 Kayla Duncan/Kathryn Talbert (WF) def. Hanna Mar/Nadine Fahoum (DU) 8-7 (7-5)
2. Rachel Kahan/Ellah Nze (DU) def. Ryann Cutillo/Emilee Malvehy (WF) 8-5
3. #50 Mary Clayton/Monica Gorny (DU) def. Martina Pavelec/Brigita Bercyte (WF) 8-2
Match Notes:
Wake Forest 2-5 (0-2 ACC); National ranking #73
Duke 9-2 (1-0 ACC); National ranking #3
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2*,1); Singles (6,5,3*,4,2,1)
Players Mentioned
