Irish falter against Duke, regroup with Iowa win
By RACHEL BIBER
Sports Editor
After falling to fifth-ranked Duke 6-1 on Saturday, the 30th-ranked Irish men's tennis team regrouped for a convincing 7-0 defeat over Iowa on Sunday.
Notre Dame, which now stands at 4-2, knew a victory over Duke on Saturday was a long shot, but did not bow down to the Blue Devils without giving them a scare.
"I think we were a little disappointed with Saturday's outcome, but I don't think we were upset about our effort," Irish junior Casey Smith said. "We tried really hard and we played hard, but we just didn't get the points we needed to get, and that's the way this sport goes. I think everyone played well, and it was a learning experience."
The Irish narrowly missed securing the doubles point against Duke to gain a 1-0 lead, but two Blue Devil comebacks at Nos. 2 and 3 doubles reversed the outcome.
Smith and Luis Haddock-Morales at No. 2 doubles and the pairing of Matt Daly and James Malhame at No. 3 doubles both saw early service breaks slip away, while Duke captured victory in both matches 8-5.
Despite the missed opportunities, the 38th-ranked Irish duo of Talarico and Taborga pulled out an impressive win over Duke's 25th-ranked team of Andres Pedroso and Ted Rueger by the score of 9-8 (10-8), after recovering from a 2-5 deficit in the tiebreaker.
"I felt like we were a lot better team doubles wise [than Duke]," Talarico said. "We've let a lot of teams just hang around with us, and we should be beating a lot of these teams a lot easier, but it just works out that way. We've had a couple of really close matches, but we've squeaked it out. I just think we need more discipline on both our parts, just to really make sure we stick to the basics, because that's all doubles is — basics really."
Duke pulled ahead 2-0 when second-ranked Marko Cerenko downed Haddock-Morales 6-4, 6-1 at No. 3 singles.
Irish freshman Matt Scott cut the lead in half with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over the Blue Devil's Alex Bose at No. 6 singles, but Duke then won a pair of straight-set matches at Nos. 2 and 5 singles to clinch the win.
The 6-1 victory was completed when Duke's 11th-ranked Ramsey Smith rallied to beat 95th-ranked Casey Smith at No. 1 singles, while Talarico was defeated at No. 4 singles in another three-set match.
Although the opportunities were there for the Irish to come away with a historic upset, the squad was not disappointed.
"They were a good team," Notre Dame head coach Bob Bayliss said. "I am disappointed we didn't capitalize on an opportunity, but I think the better team won, because they won three matches in straight sets. I don't think you can say that because we didn't win the close matches we should have won. I'm not saying that at all. The opportunity to win was there, we just weren't quite up to it."
The 7-0 drubbing of Iowa on Sunday was a positive turnaround for the Irish, but one that was expected over the unranked opponent. However, Notre Dame also suffered a loss when Talarico went down in the No. 1 doubles match with a sprained ankle, making his appearance in next week's matches against Michigan State and Kentucky questionable.
Talarico stayed on the court with teammate Taborga for a come-from-behind victory over Iowa's Tyler Cleveland and Stuart Waters, boasting the duo's record to 5-1 in dual-match play.
The win completed the sweep of the doubles for the Irish, with the other two wins coming from Smith and Haddock-Morales at No. 2 and Daly and Malhame at No. 3.
Notre Dame jumped out to a 4-0 lead by winning three straight-set matches at Nos. 4-6 singles. Brian Farrell rolled over his opponent 6-1, 6-0 at No. 4 singles, while junior Andrew Laflin won at No. 6 singles 6-3, 6-0. Scott provided the clinching win for the Irish with a 6-0, 6-1 win at No. 5 singles.
Seventy-fifth ranked Taborga racked up another win for Notre Dame at No. 2 singles with a 6-2, 6-3 win, while Smith made it 6-1 with a huge victory over Iowa's Tyler Cleveland 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 in the No. 1 singles match.
Cleveland defeated Irish All-American Ryan Sachire last year, and the match-up was also intensified due to the fact that Smith and Cleveland have a history dated back to their junior playing days.
Smith trailed 3-0 in the first set tiebreaker before winning seven of the last nine points to win the first set, and then led 5-1 in the third set before Cleveland pulled within 5-4. Cleveland overcame six match points, while Smith fought back to break his opponent's serve to complete the victory and improve his singles record to 5-1 on the year.
"In a way, it's like I really wanted to win, but it's also difficult to play someone I'm friends with, and that I've known since I was 12," Smith said. "It puts you in a weird situation because you want to win, but at the same time you feel bad when he's not playing well."
Playing with a 5-1 lead in the second-set, the momentum seemed to switch to Cleveland's side of the court, but Smith was able to stay focused.
"I didn't consciously get tight, I just didn't go out for the ball like I should have. When you are playing at No. 1, and you're playing at this level, you have to be playing at 100 percent the whole time. It's not like I dropped off a ton, but it's just that I let up a little bit, and that was enough for him to come back."
Haddock-Morales rounded out the 7-0 blanking of Iowa with a comeback win at No. 3 singles by the score of 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.
All Sports Stories for Tuesday, February 13, 2001
