One Last Homestand

EUGENE, Ore. - The No. 30 Oregon women's tennis team closes out its regular season at home hosting Colorado and Utah in their final two matches. The Ducks open the weekend against Colorado on Friday at 1:30 p.m., before honoring seniors Alyssa Tobita and Nia Rose in their season finale against Utah on Sunday at 11 a.m.

MATCH 21: No. 30 OREGON (12-8, 3-5) vs. COLORADO (8-9, 1-6)
Friday, April 13 | 1:30 p.m.
Eugene, Ore. | Student Tennis Center
Live Stats: GoDucks.com
Live Video: GoDucks.com

MATCH 22: No. 30 OREGON (12-8, 3-5) vs. UTAH (10-11, 1-7)
Sunday, April 15 | 11 a.m.
Eugene, Ore. | Student Tennis Center
Live Stats: GoDucks.com
Live Video: GoDucks.com

CALIFORNIA DREAMING
The Ducks struggled in their final road trip of the season this past weekend. UO squared off against two top-50 opponents in No. 49 California and No. 23 Stanford, falling to both teams by respective scores of 5-2 and 6-1.

Oregon started off well at Cal securing the doubles point behind wins from Alyssa Tobita and Rifanty Kahfiani as well as the freshman pair of Julia Lilien and Paiton Wagner. After Tobita extended the Ducks lead to 2-0 with a win at the No. 1 spot, the Golden Bears won the next five singles matches to record the victory. Both Wagner and Kahfiani went into a third set, but neither could finish off their opponents at the No. 5 and No. 6 spots, respectively. Kahfiani had a marathon match against Cal's Hana Mraz, eventually falling 7-6(3), 6-7(5), 1-0(8).

Oregon faced its fifth top-25 team this season in No. 23 Stanford. After taking the doubles point, the Cardinal raced out to clinch the match victory 4-0, eventually winning 6-1, behind the strength of their four ranked players. Tobita was the only Duck to record back-to-back singles wins during the California road trip, capping off the weekend by upsetting No. 16 Michaela Gordon, 4-6, 6-1, 6-3.

SENIOR SPOTLIGHT
Oregon will say farewell to its two seniors this Sunday against Utah. Both Alyssa Tobita and Nia Rose will be playing in their final two matches at the Student Tennis Center this weekend. Two staples for the Ducks over the past four seasons, they have accumulated 115 combined singles wins throughout their careers. Together, they are No. 2 on the UO all-time doubles teams wins list with a career record of 37-16 in their two seasons as a pair.

A doubles pro for the Ducks, Rose is 65-35 in doubles play throughout her career, partnering with 10 different Ducks. Rose has played the majority of her singles career at either the No. 1 or No. 3 position, going 9-12 from the No. 1 spot during her freshman season.

Tobita will finish her career as one of the top singles and doubles players at Oregon. She is currently third on the all-time singles wins list with a career record of 76-47. She is part of two of the top three doubles teams in UO history, partnering with Rose for second and Shweta Sangwan for third with a record of 36-15.

IRON SHARPENS IRON
Senior Alyssa Tobita returned to the No. 1 position this past weekend, facing back-to-back ranked opponents. Tobita played like a woman possessed downing No. 41 Julia Rosenqvist, 7-6(4), 6-4, before rallying to upset No. 16 Michaela Gordon in three sets, 4-6, 6-1, 6-3. The top 20 win marks the highest ranked victory for any Duck this season. So far this spring, Tobita has squared off against 11 ranked opponents, including a stretch of nine ranked opponents in 11 matches. Following her back-to-back wins this past weekend, she is now 5-6 against ranked foes. Three of her six losses have come against opponents ranked in the top 20.

WHERE THE DUCKS STAND
Heading into the final weekend of the season, the Ducks currently sit at eighth in the Pac-12 standings. UO has a favorable draw in its final two matches of the season with both Colorado and Utah right behind the Ducks in the standings. Both the Buffaloes and Utes have only one conference win this season. At this point it looks like the Ducks are just out of contention for a first round bye, but if they can win their final two matches, there is a chance they can earn the No. 6 seed. If that is the case, then Oregon would face Arizona who is currently in last place with a 0-7 record in the Pac-12.

IN THE RANKINGS
The Ducks dropped once again in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association's rankings, falling four spots to No. 30.

Oregon kept three doubles pairs in the ITA rankings. Despite not pairing together since UO faced William & Mary in February, senior Alyssa Tobita and Shweta Sangwan are currently ranked 28th with a 13-6 record on the year and a 4-5 record in dual play. Oregon's No. 3 all-time winningest doubles pair, they need just one win to move into a tie for second place, and 15 to tie for first.

Sangwan and Tobita are both ranked with two doubles pairs. Sangwan and partner Julia Eshet dropped to No. 82. The two Ducks are currently 4-2 this spring season, having just lost at Cal, before bouncing back to take the No. 3 pair in the country in Stanford's Emily Arbuthnott and Michaela Gordon to a 4-4 draw before being forced to abandon the match.

Tobita and Rifanty Kahfiani also dropped in the rankings, falling to No. 81. So far this spring season, the duo is 8-2 while playing every match at the No. 2 spot.

In the singles rankings, Tobita skyrocketed from No. 94 to No. 49. A Mililani, Hawaii, native, Tobita has a 13-6 record during the spring season while going 5-3 in conference play.

DOUBLING DOWN
Midway through the season, head coach Alison Silverio decided to change things up in doubles play, to some very successful results.

Having paired together a handful of times last season, junior Shweta Sangwan and sophomore Julia Eshet along with the pair of senior Alyssa Tobita and sophomore Rifanty Kahfiani have been lights out for the Ducks. Playing at the No. 1 and No. 2 spots, respectively, both pairs were undefeated through their first five matches. Heading into their season finales, Tobita and Kahfiani are 8-2 together, while Sangwan and Eshet are 4-2.

SCOUTING THE DUCKS' OPPONENTS
The Ducks open the weekend slate against Colorado who is currently 8-9 on the year and 1-6 in the Pac-12. The Buffaloes only conference win was against Arizona. CU narrowly defeated the Wildcats, 4-3, in its Pac-12 opener. Colorado is currently on a seven match losing streak heading into Friday's contest. CU is led by Freshman Linda Huang who is 19-12 in her first season, jumping straight to the No. 1 position for a 7-9 record so far this spring.

Oregon closes out the regular season with senior day against Utah. The Utes are 10-11 overall this season and 1-7 in conference play with their only win coming against Arizona, 5-2. Utah is on a two-match losing streak, but nearly upset then No. 14 UCLA 4-3 in that time. Utah is led by No. 121 Alexia Petrovic who is 8-8 this spring while playing every match from the No. 1 spot. Seniors Jena Chang and Petrovic are ranked No. 53 as a doubles pair with an 8-5 record.

MAKING HISTORY
This season's squad cemented its place in Oregon history by earning UO's first top 20 ranking in program history, ranking No. 17 in the Feb. 20 ITA rankings. The Ducks' previous highest ranking was No. 22 during the 2003 season. Seven of Oregon's opponents this season are currently ranked in the top 25, with 13 of their 22 total season opponents currently ranked in the top 50. Five of UO's eight losses this season have come against teams currently ranked in the top 25.

LOOKING AHEAD
Following this weekend's matches, the Ducks will wait to see where they rank in the final Pac-12 standings to determine their seeding and opponent for the Pac-12 Tournament.