Michigan
Duke
Wolverines Handed Defeat at No. 6 Duke
2/8/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Feb. 8, 2015
Site: Durham, N.C. (Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center)
Score: #6 Duke 6, Michigan 1
Records: U-M (1-4), Duke (8-0)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Feb. 14 - vs. Notre Dame (Varsity Tennis Center), 6 p.m.
DURHAM, N.C. -- The No. 47-ranked University of Michigan men's tennis team dropped the doubles point and three of the first four singles match off the court in a 6-1 loss at No. 6 Duke on Sunday (Feb. 8) at the Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center.
Duke grabbed the doubles point to take an early 1-0 lead in the match, winning at the No. 1 and No. 3 positions. The Blue Devils' duo of Jason Tahir and Josh Levine defeated seniors Alex Petrone and Michael Zhu, 6-2, at the No. 1 position in the first match off the court. Moments later, Duke's tandem of Chris Mengel and Bruno Semenzato earned a 6-4 decision over Michigan's pairing of sophomore/freshman Davis Crocker and sophomore Tyler Gardiner at the third spot to earn the initial point of the match. Sophomore/freshman Alex Knight and freshman Runhao Hua trailed Raphael Hemmler and Nicolas Alvarez, 5-3, at No. 2 when doubles play was abandoned.
Transitioning to singles play, the Blue Devils claimed victories at the No. 3, 5 and 6 positions to secure the dual-match victory. Duke went ahead 2-0 after Hemmeler defeated Knight, 6-1, 6-3, at the No. 3 spot. The undefeated Blue Devils clinched the match soon after as Chris Mengel defeated freshman Carter Lin , 6-2, 6-3, at No. 5, and No. 36-ranked Tahir defeated Zhu, 6-2, 7-5, at No. 2.
U-M's lone victory of the match came at the No. 6 singles position, where Crocker earned a 6-1, 6-4 victory over T.J. Pura. With the victory, Crocker improved to 2-2 this spring and 6-6 overall in 2014-15.
After the fate of the match was decided, Duke notched victories at the No. 1 and No. 4 singles positions to earn the final two points of the match.
Michigan will travel back home to take on Notre Dame on Saturday, Feb. 14, at 6 p.m. at the Varsity Tennis Center. Admission is free.
Following are match-by-match results
Singles
No. 1 -- No. 18 Nicolas Alvarez (Duke) def. Alex Petrone (U-M), 6-2, 6-7 (5), 1-0 (4)
No. 2 -- No. 36 Jason Tahir (Duke) def. Michael Zhu (U-M), 6-2, 7-5
No. 3 -- No. 103 Raphael Hemmler (Duke) def. No. 100 Alex Knight (U-M), 6-1, 6-3
No. 4 -- No. 112 Bruno Sementzo (Duke) def. Runhao Hua (U-M), 5-7, 6-4, 1-0 (8)
No. 5 -- Chris Mengel (Duke) def. Carter Lin (U-M), 6-2, 6-3
No. 6 -- Davis Crocker (U-M) def. TJ Pura (Duke), 6-1, 6-4
Doubles
No. 1 -- Alex Petrone/Michael Zhu (U-M) def. Jason Tahir/Josh Levine (Duke), 6-2
No. 2 -- Alex Knight/Runhao Hua (U-M) vs. Raphael Hemmeler/Nicolas Alvarez (Duke), 3-5 DNF
No. 3 -- Chris Mengel/Bruno Semenzato (Duke) def. Davis Crocker/Tyler Gardiner (U-M), 6-4
Order of Completion: Doubles 1-3, Singles 3-6-5-2-1-4
Communications Contact: Zach Eisendrath (734) 763-4423
