Demon Deacons Fall to No. 14 Duke

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Facing adverse weather conditions, the No. 7-ranked Wake Forest men's tennis team dropped a 4-1 decision to No. 14 Duke Friday evening at the Wake Forest Tennis Complex.

The loss snapped the Demon Deacons' (24-5, 9-2 ACC) 14-match winning streak and marked their first defeat in over a month (March 1).

For the first time since March 16, Wake Forest dropped the doubles point and faced a 1-0 deficit entering singles play. Of note, No. 1 DK Suresh Ekambaram/Holden Koons' loss on court one marked only their second of the season.

The Demon Deacons were unable to regain the momentum as the Blue Devils went 3-1 in singles play to clinch the 4-1 victory.

Individually, the Deacs were led by No. 116 Luciano Tacchi as the standout senior secured Wake Forest's lone point with a 6-3, 7-6 (8-6) win on court four over Duke's Connor Krug.

Despite Friday's result, the Deacs are an impressive 8-3 against Duke over the last 11 meetings between the two sides, dating back to 2016.

How It Happened

Wake Forest opened doubles play leading on all three courts.
- No. 1 DK Suresh Ekmabaram/Holden Koons led 2-1.
- Filippo Moroni/Matthew Thomson led 2-1.
- Luciano Tacchi/Luca Pow led 2-0.
Luciano Tacchi/Luca Pow brought the Demon Deacons within one match of securing the doubles point with a 6-3 win in third doubles.
- Duke then responded taking second doubles, 7-5.
The Blue Devils went on to clinch the doubles point with a 7-6 (7-2) win on court one.
- Friday marked the first time Wake Forest dropped the doubles point since March 16.
  - Friday also marked only the second dual doubles loss this season for No. 1 DK Suresh Ekambaram/Holden Koons.
The Demon Deacons trailed, 1-0, going into singles play.
Duke immediately took a 2-0 lead with a win on court two.
No. 116 Luciano Tacchi notched Wake Forest's first point as he knocked off Connor Krug (6-3, 7-6).
The Blue Devils then took a 3-1 advantage with a win in fifth singles.
Duke clinched the match as No. 24 Garrett Johns downed No. 29 Filippo Moroni 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 on court one.
Wake Forest suffered its first loss since March 1 as Duke won the contest, 4-1.

Singles Results
1. #24 Johns, Garrett (DU) def. #29 Filippo Moroni (WFU) 6-4, 4-6, 6-3
2. #44 Rodenas, Pedro (DU) def. #69 DK Suresh Ekambaram (WFU) 6-0, 6-4
3. Matthew Thomson (WFU) vs. Zhang, Andrew (DU) 6-3, 6-7 (4-7), 2-2, unfinished
4. #116 Luciano Tacchi (WFU) def. Krug, Connor (DU) 6-3, 7-6 (8-6)
5. Visser, Alexander (DU) def. Holden Koons (WFU) 6-2, 0-6, 6-4
6. Luca Pow (WFU) vs. Khan, Faris (DU) 7-5, 5-7, 2-1, unfinished

Doubles Results
1. #3 Johns, Garrett/Rodenas, Pedro (DU) def. #1 DK Suresh Ekambaram/Holden Koons (WFU) 7-6 (7-2)
2. Heller, Michael/Zhang, Andrew (DU) def. Filippo Moroni/Matthew Thomson (WFU) 7-5
3. Luciano Tacchi/Luca Pow (WFU) def. Khan, Faris/Truwit, Teddy (DU) 6-3

Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (2,4,5,1)

From Coach Bresky
"This was a tough match. We played in tough conditions, arguably the worst all year, but give Duke credit. They handled it better than we did. This was a good learning experience and it will help us moving forward. We're excited to bounce back on Sunday." - Head coach Tony Bresky

Up Next
The Demon Deacons will continue their home stand with a double-header against No. 23 North Carolina and Radford on Sunday. The matches are slated to begin at 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m., respectively.

Sunday's contest against the 23rd-ranked Tar Heels will serve as Senior and Graduates Day.

Follow the Deacs:
GoDeacs.com | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

Next Event

Team Stats

Players Mentioned

Holden Koons

Filippo Moroni

Luca Pow

DK Suresh Ekambaram

Luciano Tacchi

Matthew Thomson

Wake Forest Athletics