Ducks Host Idaho in Home Opener
01/28/16 | Women's Tennis
EUGENE – The Oregon women's tennis team opens its 2016 home schedule this weekend when it hosts Idaho on Saturday. The matchup between the Ducks and Vandals is scheduled for noon at the Student Tennis Center.
ABOUT THE DUCKS
Oregon enters this Saturday's matchup with a 1-1 record after splitting top-30 matches in its first weekend of dual action. The Ducks are looking to build on their momentum with another victory after a big win over 30th-ranked Virginia Tech last Sunday. Second-year head coach Alison Silverio and assistant coach Tony Giannoni return four players from the 2014-15 campaign, while having added five newcomers.
LAST TIME OUT
The Ducks faced a tough opening test in their first dual matches of the season. Oregon fell 4-0 to No. 17 Texas Tech on Saturday, but then rebounded on Sunday to take down No. 30 Virginia Tech, 4-1, on Sunday. Both matches were in Lubbock, Texas, as part of ITA Kickoff Weekend.
On Saturday, the Red Raiders took the doubles point with wins on courts two and three. The Ducks' Nia Rose and Alyssa Tobita were leading the 25th-ranked doubles team of Lynn Kiro and Alex Valenstein 4-2, but the match was suspended as soon as the Red Raiders clinched the doubles point. In singles, Texas Tech bested the Ducks on courts one, five and six to win the match.
It would be a different story on Sunday as the Ducks clinched the doubles points with wins at Nos. 2 and 3. Kennan Johnson and Christi Woodson got the Ducks' first win of the day, taking down Hokies Raluca Mita and Kelly Williford, 6-1, on No. 2. Marlou Kluiving and Shweta Sangwan captured the point for Oregon with a 6-2 victory over Elena Cerezo-Codina and Caroline Daxhelet in the third doubles spot.
In singles, Johnson was the first Duck to snag a win, knocking off 104th-ranked Ilinca Stoica, 7-5, 7-5, in the No. 1 position to give Oregon a 2-0 lead. Alyssa Tobita expanded the Oregon lead back to two by taking down 108th-ranked Daxhelet of Virginia Tech, 6-4, 7-6(3), on No. 4. It was Kluiving that dealt the final blow to the Hokies on court five, winning in three sets over Williford, 6-4, 4-6, 6-1. The victory marked the first Oregon win over a top-30 opponent since Oregon took down No. 20 Washington in 2011.
DUCKS IN THE RANKINGS
The Oregon women's tennis team moved up nine spots to No. 51 in the latest set of team rankings released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association on Wednesday. The ranking is the Ducks' highest team ranking since being slotted at No. 46 on March 3, 2009.
Freshman Shweta Sangwan and sophomore Kennan Johnson sit in a three-way tie for No. 59 in the ITA doubles rankings after going 4-1 as a tandem in the fall and advancing to the semifinals of the doubles main draw at the Jack Kramer Invitational in November. Johnson makes her second appearance in the poll after coming in at No. 56 in the ITA preseason doubles rankings with teammate Marlou Kluiving. The selection marks Sangwan's first time in the rankings.
Sangwan and Johnson are ranked No. 6 in the regional doubles rankings. Johnson is ranked No. 18 in the region in singles.
A GLANCE AT THE VANDALS
The Idaho Vandals enter Saturday's match against the Ducks unranked. Idaho (1-1) is coming off a 5-2 victory over Big Sky conference foe Montana State on Jan. 17. The Vandals' lone loss of the young 2016 season was a road match at Washington State earlier this month where the Cougars carried the day, 7-0. Idaho is led by second-year head coach Mariana Cobra, who led the team to a 15-9 overall record and a Big Sky Conference title last season in her first year with the program.
STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE
The Ducks will be well-tested heading into Pac-12 play in March, with eight of their 12 non-conference opponents appearing in the latest ITA team rankings. Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Baylor and Long Beach State each currently hold top-40 rankings, with Baylor sitting at the highest position at the poll at No. 15. The road doesn't get any easier for the Ducks come conference play, with the Pac-12 looking to be one of the strongest conferences in the country once again. Nine teams in the conference hold national rankings with USC (No. 4), California (No. 6) and Stanford (No. 8) currently in the top 10.
SPOILS OF YOUTH
For the first time since the 2009-10 season, the Oregon women's tennis team will not have a “Senior Day” in 2016. This year's Oregon roster includes two juniors, three sophomores and four freshmen, but no seniors.
FROM FAR AND WIDE
The 2016 Oregon women's tennis roster is made up of players from all corners of the country and globe. The Ducks hail from five different states (California, Florida, Louisiana, New Mexico, and New York) and three different countries (India, Netherlands and the United States).
ROAD WARRIORS
The Ducks will spend much of the season on the road, with 10 of their 12 non-conference dual matches away from home. Oregon will host Idaho on Jan. 30 and Boise State on March 5 for its two non-conference home matches.
YOUNG GUNS
The 2015-16 Oregon women's tennis roster features five newcomers, including four freshmen. The Ducks' new additions have started the season strong, combining for a 36-21 record through the fall and early spring. Two Oregon newcomers (freshman Shweta Sangwan and sophomore Kennan Johnson) are already on their way to a stellar campaign, having already posted 10 wins this year.
POWERHOUSE PAIR
Oregon's duo of Nia Rose and Alyssa Tobita was a force to be reckoned with at the No. 1 position last season. The two compiled a 25-10 doubles record during the 2014-15 season. Their 25 wins surpassed the former Duck pair of Dominika Dieskova and Daria Panova (23-12) for the No. 2 spot on the all-time doubles single-season wins list. Rose and Tobita served up the 2016 season with a 2-1 weekend at the Long Beach Invitational.
NO SOPHOMORE SLUMP
Marlou Kluiving had a monstrous sophomore campaign in 2015, owning a 23-9 overall record in singles play. The 23 wins tied her with Katie Glyn and Pavlina Smatova for seventh on the all-time single-season singles wins list. After four wins in the fall and four wins so far this spring, Kluiving is currently Oregon's active leader in singles wins with 35.
SILVERIO INKS FIVE-STAR JULIA ESHET
Oregon women's tennis head coach Alison Silverio announced the signing of five-star recruit Julia Eshet in November. A native of Hollywood, Fla., Eshet is ranked No. 5 in the state of Florida, No. 9 in the southeast region and No. 35 nationally, according to TennisRecruiting.net.
With a 25-8 overall record on the junior circuit, Eshet is 9-1 against four-star recruits, 7-4 against fellow five-star recruits and 2-2 against blue-chip recruits. In March, Eshet defeated top-seeded Tiffany Huber, 6-3, 6-0, in the finals of the Biscayne Tennis Open to take home the singles title. A week earlier, she tallied two straight-set wins to reach the finals at the Tier One Tennis Spring L6 Championships.
In the last year, Eshet has also earned singles titles at the USTA Florida Junior State Championships, the Holiday Level 6 Championships and the Broward Turkey Bowl.
LOOKING FORWARD
After opening up the 2016 home schedule this weekend, the Ducks head back out on the road for their second Texas road trip in three weeks. Oregon will head to Waco, Texas, next Friday to play No. 15 Baylor, before heading further south to Houston to match up with the 44th-ranked Houston Cougars on Sunday.
Players Mentioned
