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vs NCAA Singles & Doubles Championship
Photo by: Bri Shaw, Duke Athletics
Balus Advances in NCAA Singles Championship
11/18/2025 8:55:00 PM | Women's Tennis
ORLANDO, Fla. – Duke women's tennis sophomore Irina Balus opened action in the NCAA Singles Championship Tuesday with an impressive, 6-4, 6-3, victory over Eugenia Zozaya Menendez of Southern California. The championship is being contested at the United States Tennis Association (USTA) National Campus in Orlando.
Balus, a product of Banská Bystrica, Slovakia, opened the first set with a 3-1 advantage and after Zozaya Menendez cut the lead to 5-3, Balus closed with a 6-4 victory. In the second set, Balus opened with a 3-0 lead and led 4-1. Zozaya Menendez won a pair of deuce points to cut the lead to 4-3, but Balus held serve to go ahead, 5-3, and eventually closed the match with a 6-3 win.
In her second appearance in the NCAA Singles Championship, Balus moves on to face 68th-ranked Reece Carter of Washington Wednesday at 2 p.m. Balus is currently ranked No. 14 nationally in singles.
In her NCAA Singles Championship debut, Duke's Liv Hovde dropped a 5-7, 4-6 decision to 102nd-ranked Zuzanna Kubacha of Baylor in the first round.
Hovde and Shavit Kimchi will open play in the NCAA Doubles Championship Wednesday with a match against Mao Mushika/Greta Greco Lucchina of California at 5 p.m.
To stay up to date with Blue Devils women's tennis, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching "DukeWTEN".
#GoDuke
Balus, a product of Banská Bystrica, Slovakia, opened the first set with a 3-1 advantage and after Zozaya Menendez cut the lead to 5-3, Balus closed with a 6-4 victory. In the second set, Balus opened with a 3-0 lead and led 4-1. Zozaya Menendez won a pair of deuce points to cut the lead to 4-3, but Balus held serve to go ahead, 5-3, and eventually closed the match with a 6-3 win.
In her second appearance in the NCAA Singles Championship, Balus moves on to face 68th-ranked Reece Carter of Washington Wednesday at 2 p.m. Balus is currently ranked No. 14 nationally in singles.
In her NCAA Singles Championship debut, Duke's Liv Hovde dropped a 5-7, 4-6 decision to 102nd-ranked Zuzanna Kubacha of Baylor in the first round.
Hovde and Shavit Kimchi will open play in the NCAA Doubles Championship Wednesday with a match against Mao Mushika/Greta Greco Lucchina of California at 5 p.m.
To stay up to date with Blue Devils women's tennis, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching "DukeWTEN".
#GoDuke
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