Wake Forest Athletics
Deacons Travel to UNCW, Host No. 5 Duke
3/14/2012 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
March 14, 2012
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The Wake Forest women's tennis team will face two opponents from the Tar Heel state this week when it travels to take on UNC Wilmington on Thursday at 11 a.m. before returning to Winston-Salem to host No. 5 Duke in its ACC home opener on Sunday at 3 p.m.
The Demon Deacons (2-8, 0-2 ACC) will look to keep momentum going after downing ETSU 5-2 last weekend and coming up just shy of an upset in a 4-3 loss to No. 29 Brown that came down to the final singles match on court.
Wake Forest swept all three doubles matches against both opponents and have now taken the doubles point in seven of 10 matches this season. Despite their record, the Demon Deacons have been competitive in almost every match. They have suffered five 4-3 losses already this year, the most for a Wake Forest team since 2003.
Kayla Duncan is currently riding a four-match winning streak at No. 1 singles, including a dominant 6-0, 6-0 performance against Brown's Misia Krasowski. The Winston-Salem native is currently ranked No. 74 nationally in singles and leads the Demon Deacons with 32 total wins this season - 17 in doubles and 15 in singles.
Wake Forest will be facing UNC Wilmington for the first time. The Seahawks hold a 6-4 record and are in the midst of a four-match winning streak. Demon Deacon players went a combined 4-1 against UNCW players in fall tournament play.
The Deacons' last win over Duke came in 2007, though they did play the Blue Devils tough in Durham last season. Both Martina Pavelec and Kathryn Talbert played three-setters against ranked Duke opponents, with Pavelec emerging victorious, and Talbert and Kayla Duncan defeated the Devils' No. 1 doubles team.
The Blue Devils hold an impressive 11-1 record to start 2012 with their lone loss coming against UCLA in the finals of the ITA National Team Indoor Championship. Their match against Wake Forest will be their ACC opener.
Players Mentioned
