CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois men’s tennis defeated No, 8 Duke 5-2 in front of a packed Atkins Tennis Center Friday night.
“It was great to get a Friday night win over a very good Duke team, we have a ton of respect for them” head coach Brad Dancer said. “The Krug brothers gave us a run for our money tonight, they took it to us in straight sets so big credit to them. I thought we did some right things in doubles and that showed. Karlis (Ozolins) was much more assertive in doubles, and when the Big Bear is assertive then Hunter and him become a really good team. I thought Kenta did a really good job figuring things out down the stretch — he figured out his puzzle. Hunter (Heck) went into lock down mode in his match and lead the team to the finish line. When Hunter leads this team, we’re really, really good. Big credit to Hunter Heck to help take off some of the pressure on everyone.”
Sophomore Kenta Miyoshi clinched the match for the Illini, defeating Andrew Zhang 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 on court three.
Karlis Ozolins and William Mroz also collected wins – Ozolins 6-3, 6-3 over Garrett Johns and Mroz 6-3, 6-4 against Andrew Dale.
After Miyoshi clinched the match, Hunter Heck continued his match with Pedro Rodenas, which he eventually won 4-6, 7-5, 6-3.
Illinois will be back in action tomorrow night at 6 p.m. against No. 17 North Carolina, who the Illini beat, 4-3, at the ITA Kickoff Weekend.
Results
Doubles…
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