Duke Opens Dual Match Slate with 6-1 Victory Over James Madison

Saturday, January 11

Durham, N.C.

1:00 PM

Duke University

James Madison

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Duke Opens Dual Match Slate with 6-1 Victory Over James Madison

1/11/2025 6:12:00 PM | Women's Tennis

Box Score Photo Gallery Box Score (PDF)Ashworth Interview Jackson Interview

DURHAM, N.C. – In the 2025 dual match opener on Saturday inside Sheffield Indoor Tennis Stadium, the 11th-ranked Duke women's tennis team registered a 6-1 victory over James Madison.

The Blue Devils moved to 1-0 on the season, while the Dukes dropped to 0-1.

How It Happened

The Blue Devils got off to a hot start in doubles by sweeping all three courts to take a 1-0 lead.
On court two, Duke's 71st-ranked duo of Emma Jackson and Shavit Kimchi blanked Elena Kravela and Mia Saveljic, 6-0.
With a 6-1 victory on court three, Eleana Yu and Ava Krug clinched the doubles point for the Blue Devils with a win over Daria Munteanu and Hope Moulin.
Duke's 10th-ranked duo of Ellie Coleman and Irina Balus closed the doubles courts with a 6-2 win against Ines Oliveira and Sophie Williams.
The Blue Devils kept the momentum going into singles winning the first set on four of the six courts.
A senior from Midland, Mich., Coleman put Duke's second point on the board with a 6-1, 6-2 win on court four against Mia Saveljic.Coleman jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first set and 4-0 advantage in the second en route to the win.
On court three, 49th-ranked Kimchi leaped out to a 5-0 lead against Oliveira and won the first set, 6-1.After falling behind 0-1 and 1-2 in the second set, Kimchi closed strong by winning four out of the five games to win, 6-2.
With the Blue Devils leading 3-0, rookie Krug was taking on Corinna Rietmann on court six.Krug, who is from Sarasota, Fla., got out to a 5-0 lead in the first set and won 6-2.She once again had a good start leading 4-0 in the second, but Rietmann won back-to-back games to cut into the lead, 4-2.Krug closed by winning two games to win her first collegiate dual match in her debut and clinch the Duke victory, 4-0.
In her first dual match of her career, 36th-ranked Balus totaled a 6-2, 6-4 win against Munteanu to move the score to 5-0.
In a tight battle on court one between Duke's 25th-ranked Jackson and Kravela, it took three sets to finish the contest.Jackson, who is from La Grange Park, Ill., led 4-2 early in the first, but Kravela stormed back to take the first set 6-4.In the second, Jackson jumped out to a 3-0 lead and ended up evening the match with a 6-2 win.The duo went to a third set tiebreaker and Kravela led 2-0 and 3-1 early.Jackson came back to even the ledger, 4-4, and after the match was tied 5-5, Kravela won three straight points to take an 8-5 lead.In another comeback, Jackson evened the score, 8-8 and then won back-to-back points to take the win, 10-8.
Katie Codd rounded out the day on court five with a 4-6, 6-4, 9-11 loss to Williams. Codd led 4-3 in the first set, before falling, 6-4. She then took the second set, 6-4, before dropping a close, 11-9, tiebreaker to fall in three sets.

Notes

After missing the final 18 matches of the 2023-24 campaign, Ellie Coleman played her first dual match since Feb. 3 of 2024.She cruised to a 6-1, 6-2 victory.Coleman is now 37-17 over her career in dual match action.
Duke has now won 59 out of the last 60 matches when winning the doubles point.
The Blue Devils are now 108-5 at home over the last 18 years and holds a 104-4 inside Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center since it opened 17 seasons ago.
Sophomore Eleana Yu competed in her first dual match of her career in doubles and teamed with Ava Krug to get the win.
Coleman and Irina Balus moved to 10-2 on the season in doubles action.
Balus is now 8-2 on the year in singles play.

Quotes

"They are a good team to start our season with to be honest with you.I thought they were going to be able to put a lot of balls in play and challenge us in certain throughout the lineup.It is great to get out and play against different competition.We have been practicing for a little bit here and we were ready to go.I think it showed at the start of doubles.Just excited for the season to get going.We have a great group of girls and great product to put on the court.I am looking forward to seeing where this takes us after the first win today." -- Duke head coach Jamie Ashworth
"It is always super fun to start dual season.I think we did a great job.Our number one goal was to have great energy and I think we definitely accomplished that.You know, it wasn't pretty tennis, but we got it done."-- Duke senior Emma Jackson

Next Match

Duke will host 10th-ranked Pepperdine on Friday, Jan. 17 at 6 p.m., in the Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center.

To stay up to date with Blue Devils women's tennis, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching "DukeWTEN".

Duke Centennial
In 2024, Duke celebrates its Centennial, marking one hundred years since Trinity College became Duke University. Duke will use this historic milestone to deepen the understanding of its history, inspire pride and strengthen bonds and partnerships, and prepare for a second century of continued excellence and impactful leadership. To learn more, please visit 100.duke.edu

#GoDuke

#11 Duke 6, James Madison 1
January 11, 2025
Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center * Durham, N.C.

Doubles
1. #10 Ellie Coleman/Irina Balus (DU) def. Ines Oliveira/Sophie Williams (JMU) 6-2
2. Emma Jackson/Shavit Kimchi (DU) def. Elena Kravela/Mia Saveljic (JMU) 6-0
3. Eleana Yu/Ava Krug (DU) def. Daria Munteanu/Hope Moulin (JMU) 6-1

Singles
1. #25 Emma Jackson (DU) def. Elena Kravela (JMU) 4-6, 6-2, 10-8
2. #36 Irina Balus (DU) def. Daria Munteanu (JMU) 6-2, 6-4
3. #49 Shavit Kimchi (DU) def. Ines Oliveira (JMU) 6-1, 6-2
4. Ellie Coleman (DU) def. Mia Saveljic (JMU) 6-1, 6-2
5. Sophie Williams (JMU) def. Katie Codd (DU) 6-4, 4-6, 11-9
6. Ava Krug (DU) def. Corinna Rietmann (JMU) 6-2, 6-2
Order of Finish: Doubles (2,3*,1), Singles (4,3,6*,2,1,5)