Hokies open ACC play against No. 43 Duke, also host James Madison

Tech will face Blue Devils on Saturday, JMU on Sunday

March 3, 2017

BLACKSBURG – The Virginia Tech men’s tennis team is set to open ACC play on Saturday as the Hokies host No. 43 Duke in a 1 p.m. match at Burrows Burleson Tennis Center. Tech will wrap up the weekend hosting James Madison on Sunday at 2 p.m.

MATCH INFORMATION
Date/Time: March 4, 2017 / 1 p.m.
Opponent: #43 Duke
Site: Blacksburg, Va. (Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center)

Date/Time: March 5, 2017 / 2 p.m.
Opponent: James Madison
Site: Blacksburg, Va. (Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center)

Live Scoring/Video: HokieSports.com

THE HOKIES (4-5)
Virginia Tech competed at the Blue-Gray National Tennis Classic the last time out. The Hokies claimed a win over Alabama, but fell to Rice and Auburn.

Jai Corbett is ranked 49th in the ITA entering the weekend and has tallied a 3-3 mark this spring. Alexandre Ribeiro is also 3-3 while Mitch Harper is 4-4. Freddy Mesmer has a tally of 3-0 in dual play.

THE BLUE DEVILS (7-3)
Duke swept a doubleheader last weekend, defeating Coastal Carolina 7-0 and Charlotte 6-1.

The Blue Devils have one player ranked in the ITA with No. 14 Nicolas Alvarez, but the Duke player has not hit the court this spring after going 9-5 in the fall. Nick Stachowiak is 10-0 to start the dual seasons while Spencer Furman has posted an 8-2 tally, seeing time primarily in the four and five. TJ Pura is 6-2, including a 4-1 mark at six.

THE DUKES (3-4)
James Madison fell to Elon 4-3 last weekend, picking up points in the lower half of the lineup as Paul Mendoza, Brett Moorhead and Tate Steinour claimed wins.

Moorhead and Mendoza have both recorded three wins this spring while Steinour has a 5-1 record. Sebastian Salinas is 3-4.

THE SERIES
The Hokies are 5-24 all-time against the Blue Devils, but Tech has won the past two meetings between the teams including a 5-2 decision last year in Durham.

Tech is 23-3 all-time against James Madison and claimed last year’s contest 7-0 with returnees Harper and Jason Kros both winning their singles matches.

Up Next: The Hokies will travel to NC State for a match on Friday, March 17 before returning home to host UNC on Sunday, March 19.

For updates on Virginia Tech men's tennis, follow the Hokies on Twitter Follow @VT_MTennis