No. 3 Duke edges past No. 23 Ole Miss

DU

Mulholland

CHARLOTTESVILE, Va. — No. 3 Duke outlasted No. 23 Mississippi, 4-3 on Friday morning in first round action at the ITA National Women’s Team Indoor Championships.

In doubles, Beatrice Capra and Rachel Kahan defeated Gabby Rangel and Erin Stephens 8-1 in the No. 2 spot. Monica Gorny and Hanna Mar took down Caroline Rohde-Moe and Julia Jones, 8-2 in the No. 3 spot to clinch the doubles point for the Blue Devils.

Ester Goldfeld and Mary Clayton trailed the nation’s fourth-ranked tandem of Kristi Boxx and Abby Guthrie, 7-4 in the No. 1 spot, but the match went unfinished after Duke notched the doubles point.

In singles action, Goldfeld defeated Stephens, 6-2, 7-5 in the No. 3 spot to put Duke ahead 2-0 on the scoreboard. The Rebels responded however, as Guthrie upset the 66th-ranked Clayton 6-2, 6-2, at No. 5 singles, and Jones collected a 6-4, 6-4 victory against 118th-ranked Kahan in No. 4 singles to tie the match at 2-2.

The No. 1 singles match pitted the seventh-ranked Capra against Ole Miss’ 12th-ranked Boxx, but Capra made easy work of the Rebels’ top singles player, winning 6-4, 6-1, to put Duke back on top, 3-2.

Ranked 38th in the nation, Mar took on the Rebels’ 54th-ranked Rohde-Moe in No. 2 singles. Mar led 3-2 in the first set, but Rohde-Moe battled back to take the final four games and take the first set, 6-3. Rohde-Moe eventually won the second set 6-4 to claim the win and tie the match at three-all.

The No. 6 singles match between Annie Mulholland and Vivian Vlaar turned into the deciding contest with the overall score tied. Mulholland won the first set 6-3, and led 4-2 in the second, before Vlaar fought back to claim the set, 7-6 (7-2), and force a deciding third frame.

Mulholland jumped out to a 3-1 lead in the final set before Vlaar tied it at three. Mulholland broke the tie to take the final three games and clinch her first win for the Blue Devils.