No. 10 Duke Falls to No. 3 North Carolina, 4-1

Tuesday, March 29

Durham, N.C.

3:00 PM

Duke University

North Carolina

Duke Represented on Final ITA Ranking of 2016 Season

No. 10 Duke Falls to No. 3 North Carolina, 4-1

3/29/2016 7:15:00 PM | Women's Tennis

Box Score: North Carolina 4, Duke 1

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C. – The Duke women's tennis team, ranked 10th in the nation, faced a top-15 opponent for the second time in four days, welcoming third-ranked North Carolina to Durham, N.C., Tuesday afternoon. The Blue Devils were unable to extend their three-match win streak however, falling, 4-1, to the Tar Heels. The loss drops Duke's record to 13-3 overall and 6-2 against ACC opponents, while North Carolina improves to 20-2 and 8-0 in conference play.

“I thought that we were a little too flat, especially in the doubles.” head coach Jamie Ashworth said. “We came out and we were trying to feel our way through the match. I felt like there wasn't a lot of emotion from either team. When we play our best, we are physically, emotionally and mentally at a really high level. If any of those slip, or if any of those let down at all, then anyone can beat us. Our emotion, all the way through, from doubles to the singles, wasn't where it needed to be against such a quality team.”

The Blue Devils fell behind early after the Tar Heels took matches on courts one and two to secure the doubles point.

Court one showcased a contest between the Duke tandem of senior Beatrice Capra and sophomore Samantha Harris and North Carolina's top-ranked duo of Hayley Carter and Whitney Kay. The two pairs exchanged games at the start of the match, bringing the score to 2-2, before Carter and Kay won three straight games to take a 5-2 lead. Although Capra and Harris would cut the lead to two games, the North Carolina team would win the final game necessary to earn the match, 6-3. Capra and Harris fell to 1-2 when competing as a doubles pair this season with Tuesday's loss.

North Carolina clinched the doubles point on court two after Duke's duo of juniors Alyssa Smith and Chalena Scholl fell to the 65th-ranked pair of Kate Vialle and Jessie Aney, 6-2. The North Carolina tandem pulled ahead by taking a 4-1 advantage, a deficit that Smith and Scholl were unable to overcome. The Duke tandem pulled within two games of the opposition, but Vialle and Aney won back-to-back games, taking the match and the doubles point. Smith and Scholl dropped to 11-5 with the result.

With the doubles point decided, the contest on court three between Duke's Ellyse Hamlin and Kaitlyn McCarthy and North Carolina's Ashley Dai and Chloe Ouellet-Pizer remained unfinished, with North Carolina leading, 5-2.

Although evenly matched across many of the singles courts, the Tar Heels picked up the three singles victories necessary to win the match.

For the third straight competition, Harris led the Blue Devils off the singles courts, picking up a 6-2, 6-3, victory over Vialle on court four. Harris established herself from the outset, jumping out to a commanding 5-1 lead in the first set. Harris would surrender an additional game before winning the first set, 6-2. Harris' momentum carried over to the second set, where she led 3-1, but Vialle won back-to-back games to tie the score at 3-3. Unfazed, Harris won three-straight games to win her 14th singles match of the year.

North Carolina regained the lead after No. 1 ranked Carter defeated 28th-ranked Capra, 6-2, 6-1, on court one. Capra stayed within a game of Carter through the first five games of the first set, but with the score sitting at 3-2, Carter won the next three games. In the second set, Capra tied the score at 1-1 before Carter posted a five-game run that concluded the match. With the loss, Capra falls to 8-5 on the year.

On court two, 92nd-ranked Scholl found herself in an exciting match against 29th-ranked Kay. In the end, Kay would prevail, earning the 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) victory over Scholl. In the first set, Scholl surrendered the first game before winning four of the next five to lead 4-2. Scholl was unable to maintain the lead however, as Kay won the final four games to go up a set. The start of the second set mirrored that of the first, with Scholl dropping the first game before winning four of the next five to lead 4-2. Scholl and Kay exchanged games, bringing the score to 5-3, before Kay won three straight. Scholl exhibited no signs of quit, as she took the 12th game of the set with a forehand winner down the line to force a tiebreak. With the score knotted at 2-2 in the tiebreak, Kay won three straight points, giving her a 5-2 advantage that she would not relinquish. Scholl, who carried a seven-match win streak into Tuesday's competition, falls to 17-7 on the year and suffers her first loss to an ACC opponent this season.

With North Carolina leading 3-1, the match was decided on court five between Ouellet-Pizer and 78th-ranked Hamlin. Hamlin and Ouellet-Pizer proved two evenly matched competitors, with five separate ties in the first set. With the two tied at 5-5, Ouellet-Pizer captured back-to-back games to win the set. In the second set, Hamlin led 2-2 before Ouellet-Pizer won three straight to gain a 3-2 advantage. Hamlin would once again tie the second set at 3-3, but Ouellet-Pizer earned the win by taking three of the next four games. The loss brings Hamlin's record to 11-7.

With the result of the match already determined, the contests on courts three and six remained unfinished. McCarthy, the 35th-ranked singles player in the country, trailed Aney, the 53rd-ranked singles player in the country, 7-6 (7-5), 4-0, while on court six, the match between redshirt freshman Christina Makarova and Marika Akkerman was suspended with the score set at 7-6 (7-3), 2-3.

The Blue Devils return to action Friday, traveling to Charlottesville, Va., for a 3 p.m. contest with 12th-ranked Virginia.

#GoDuke

Singles competition
1. #1 Hayley Carter (NC) def. #28 Beatrice Capra (DU) 6-2, 6-1
2. #29 Whitney Kay (NC) def. #92 Chalena Scholl (DU) 6-4, 7-6 (7-4)
3. #35 Kaitlyn McCarthy (DU) vs. #53 Jessie Aney (NC) 6-7 (5-7), 0-4, unfinished
4. Samantha Harris (DU) def. Kate Vialle (NC) 6-2, 6-3
5. Chloe Ouellet-Pizer (NC) def. #78 Ellyse Hamlin (DU) 7-5, 6-4
6. Christina Makarova (DU) vs. Marika Akkerman (NC) 6-7 (3-7), 3-2, unfinished

Doubles competition
1. #1 Hayley Carter/Whitney Kay (NC) def. Beatrice Capra/Samantha Harris (DU) 6-3
2. #65 Kate Vialle/Jessie Aney (NC) def. Alyssa Smith/Chalena Scholl (DU) 6-2
3. Ellyse Hamlin/Kaitlyn McCarthy (DU) vs. Ashley Dai/Chloe Ouellet-Pizer (NC) 2-5, unfinished