January 31, 1999
EUGENE, Ore. - The Oregon men's tennis team hosted the four-time National Champions of Stanford today at the Eugene Swim and Tennis Club. The Cardinal dominated the courts as Stanford swept Oregon in both doubles and singles, winning the dual match 7-0. With a shut-out like the Ducks experienced today, the final score does not clearly represent the competitiveness showed amongst the two teams.
"I think we are playing better tennis, but we gave away too many points," said Oregon men's tennis head coach Chris Russell. "We played more on our heels today in comparison with how we played against California yesterday, which was a much more distinctive style."
In doubles, the Ducks' No. 1 duo of Guillermo Carter and Carlos Navarro were down 0-5, before they managed to score five points, lessening the deficit placed on them by Stanford's fourth-ranked duo of Ryan Wolters and K. J. Hippensteel, 8-5. Oregon's Thomas Schneiter and Cedric Vanhaver fell to 20th-ranked Geoff Abrams and Alex Kim, 8-4, while teammates David Becker and Bertrand Devillers lost to Stanford's Scotty Scott and Ali Ansari, 8-6.
In singles, Stanford played flawlessly, winning all six matches in straight-sets, only giving up the few points that Oregon had to fight hard to earn. At the number one position, Oregon's Carter fell to the Cardinal's Ryan Wolters, 6-1, 6-1, who is currently ranked fifth in the nation, while at No. 2, the Ducks' Thomas Schneiter lost to 35th-ranked Geoff Abrams, 6-2, 6-4. Oregon's Carlos Navarro fell to 19th-ranked Alex Kim, 6-0, 6-3, while teammate Bertrand Devillers lost to 17th-ranked (tied at 17th) K.J. Hippensteel, 6-2, 6-1.
"We had a tough day today," said Chris Russell. "Any time you play Stanford, you have to earn your way in the first sets, and we didn't do that. Stanford is a very well coached team. They are where they are because of how they play, and they play with a lot of purpose. I hope that our guys are able to recognize that and improve on that themselves."
The Ducks' record moves to 1-4 in conference play and 0-2 in the Pac-10. Oregon will travel to the Bay Area on February 13-14 to take on San Diego State, who is tied for 28th in the nation, and UC Irvine, who is currently ranked 67th.
FINAL:(1st) Stanford 7, (62nd) Oregon 0
Singles:
1. (5th) Ryan Wolters (Stanford) d. (77th) Guillermo Carter (Oregon), 6-1, 6-1.
2. (35th) Geoff Abrams (Stanford) d. Thomas Schneiter (Oregon), 6-2, 6-4.
3. (19th) Alex Kim (Stanford) d. Carlos Navarro (Oregon), 6-0, 6-3.
4. (T17th) K. J. Hippensteel (Stanford) d. Bertrand Devillers (Oregon), 6-2, 6-1.
5. Scotty Scott (Stanford) d. Joaquin Hamdan (Oregon), 6-2, 6-2.
6. Ali Ansari (Stanford) d. Miguel Arriaga (Oregon), 6-1, 6-4.
Doubles:
1. (4th) R. Wolters/K. Hippensteel (Stanford) d. G. Carter/C. Navarro (Oregon), 8-5.
2. (20th) G. Abrams/A. Kim (Stanford) d. T. Schneiter/Cedric Vanhaver (Oregon), 8-4.
3. S. Scott/A. Ansari (Stanford) d. B. Devillers/David Becker (Oregon), 8-6.