No. 22 Wolfpack Picks Up Statement Win at No. 49 Duke

DURHAM, N.C. – The 22nd-ranked NC State men's tennis team defeated Duke for the first time since 1980 as it defeated the No. 49 Blue Devils 4-1 Wednesday afternoon at the Ambler Tennis Center. The victory improved the Wolfpack's record to 16-9 (7-4 ACC), while Duke falls to 10-12 (4-7 ACC).

NC State's win marked its first over Duke since April 1, 1980 and was only its third time in program history that the Pack has defeated the Blue Devils. The match also gave NC State its seventh ACC win of the season, the most conference wins in a single season in program history.

"Great job from the guys today," said head coach Kyle Spencer. "It's always special when you haven't done something as a program in a while, so I'm happy that the team is getting credit for all of its hard work. We now turn our attention to Miami on Friday for Senior Day. I hope that Wolfpack Nation comes out in full force for this special group of seniors."

NC State took an early lead in the match score by winning the doubles point for the 17th time this season.

Igor Saveljic and Ivan Saveljic kicked things off for the Wolfpack by cruising to the 6-3 victory over Duke's Catalin Mateas and Sean Sculley.

The 44th-ranked duo of Alexis Galarneau and Michael Ogden defeated Jason Lapidus and Vincent Lin by a 7-5 score to secure the doubles point for the Wolfpack.

The Pack carried its momentum into singles play as it took the first set on five courts and went on to pick up three victories in straight sets.

NC State picked up two quick victories in singles play, the first one coming as Georgiy Malyshev defeated Samir Agady 6-2, 6-0. Igor put the Pack a match away from the clinch as he defeated Mateas 6-2, 6-2.

Duke got on the board with a win on court four, but Tadas Babelis clinched the match for NC State, claiming a 6-3, 6-4 win over Robert Levine.

UP NEXT:
The Pack makes its return to Raleigh as it concludes regular-season action on Friday when it hosts Miami at the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Center. First serve is set for 4 p.m., and the Senior Day ceremony will take place immediately following the match.

RESULTS:
No. 22 NC State 4, No. 49 Duke 1
Doubles
Order of finish: (2, 1)
1. #44 Alexis Galarneau/Michael Ogden (NC State) def. Jason Lapidus/Vincent Lin (Duke) 7-5
2. Igor Saveljic/Ivan Saveljic (NC State) def. Catalin Mateas/Sean Sculley (Duke) 6-3
3. Georgiy Malyshev/Tadas Babelis (NC State) vs. Robert Levin/Spencer Furman (Duke) 6-6 (1-4), unfinished

Singles
Order of finish: (6, 2, 4, 3)
1. #22 Alexis Galarneau (NC State) vs. Spencer Furman (Duke) 6-2, 4-3 unfinished
2. Igor Saveljic (NC State) def. Catalin Mateas (Duke) 6-2, 6-2
3. Tadas Babelis (NC State) def. Robert Levine (Duke) 6-2, 6-4
4. Sean Sculley (Duke) def. Yannai Barkai (NC State) 6-2, 6-3
5. Robert Turzak (NC State) vs. Jason Lapidus (Duke) 6-4, 2-4, unfinished
6. Georgiy Malyshev (NC State) def. Samir Agadi (Duke) 6-2, 6-0

#GoPack | @PackMensTennis

No. 22 Wolfpack Picks Up Statement Win at No. 49 Duke

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Players Mentioned

Tadas Babelis

Yannai Barkai

Alexis Galarneau

Georgiy Malyshev

Michael Ogden

Igor Saveljic

Ivan Saveljic

Robert Turzak