April 8, 2000
STANFORD, Calif. - The fourth-ranked Stanford University men's tennis team (17-0 overall, 5-0 Pac-10) moved a step closer to its third straight Pacific-10 Conference title with a 5-2 win over No. 18 USC (13-7, 3-2) on Saturday afternoon at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium.
The Cardinal, which defeated top-ranked UCLA 4-3 on Friday afternoon, leads the Bruins by one game and the Trojans by two games with two remaining. Stanford can clinch the title with wins at No. 63 Arizona State next Friday and No. 55 Arizona next Saturday. The Cardinal defeated both the Sun Devils and Wildcats 7-0 in non-conference matches on The Farm last weekend.
The afternoon once again belonged to the Cardinal duo of senior Geoff Abrams (Newport Beach, CA/Newport Harbor HS) and junior Alex Kim (Potomac, MD/Winston Churchill HS). The pair, which comprise the top-ranked doubles team in the nation, opened the day by posting an impressive 8-4 win over fourth-ranked Ryan Moore (Fullerton, CA/Servite HS) and Nicholas Rainey (Mercer Island, WA/Weil College Prep HS). Abrams and Kim are now 30-3 on the season, including seven wins over top 10 opponents, and have won 18 of their last 19.
In singles play, both the third-ranked Kim and ninth-ranked Abrams extended their winning streaks to 12 matches. Kim defeated 40th-ranked Patrick Gottesleben (Waldorf, Germany/Schillerschule) 6-4, 6-1 and Abrams knocked off Moore 6-1, 6-3. Kim is now 32-3 on the season, while Abrams improved to 32-6. The Cardinal won four of the six singles matches, and all four wins came in straight sets.
The Cardinal also received an impressive win from sophomore K.J. Hippensteel (Roanoke, VA/International Academy) and freshman David Martin (Key Biscayne, FL/Boca Raton Prep) at No. 2 doubles. Hippensteel and Martin improved to 11-2 on the season with a convincing 8-1 win over 42nd-ranked Gottesleben and Daniel Langre (Mexico City, Mexico).
USC picked up its two points on a three-set win by 58th-ranked Langre at No. 3 singles and a straight set victory by 76th-ranked Andrew Park (San Marino, CA/San Marino HS) at No. 4. Langre beat Hippensteel 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 and Park defeated 97th-ranked Scotty Scott (Belvedere, CA/Pinewood HS) 6-3, 6-3.
The Cardinal concludes its nine-match, 22-day homestand on Wednesday when it takes on Utah at 1:30 p.m. at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium.
#4 Stanford 5, #18 USC 2
Singles
No. 1 - #3 Alex Kim (S) d. #40 Patrick Gottesleben, 6-4, 6-1
No. 2 - #9 Geoff Abrams (S) d.Ryan Moore, 6-1, 6-3
No. 3 - #58 Daniel Langre (U) d. K.J. Hippensteel, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3
No. 4 - #76 Andrew Park (U) d. #97 Scotty Scott, 6-3, 6-3
No. 5 - David Martin (S) d. Nicholas Rainey, 6-4, 6-1
No. 6 - Ali Ansari (S) d. Parker Collins, 6-3, 6-2
Doubles
No. 1 - #1 Geoff Abrams/Alex Kim (S) d. #6 Ryan Moore/Nic Rainey, 8-4
No. 2 - K.J. Hippensteel/David Martin (S) d. #42 Patrick Gottesleben/Daniel Langre, 8-1
No. 3 - Ali Ansari/Scotty Scott (S) d. Parker Collins/Andrew Park, 8-6
(Stanford wins doubles point)
Records - #18 USC 13-7 overall (3-2 Pac-10), #4 Stanford 17-0 (5-0).