The Oregon women’s tennis team opened up its fall preseason schedule with mixed results at the Riviera/ITA All-American Tournament in Pacific Palisades, Calif., this week.
The top collegiate women tennis players in the country compete in the eight-day tournament, the first of three national championship events this season.
Oregon sophomore Dominika Dieskova lost her opening round matchup to USC’s Nicole Leimbach in two straight sets, 6-0 and 6-2.
Dieskova, who is ranked the No. 51 singles player in the nation, recovered after moving into the consolation bracket by defeating Alabama’s Ashley Bentley in a hard-fought three-set match, 2-6, 7-5 and 6-3. Bentley was ranked just ahead of Dieskova as the No. 49 singles player in the nation, according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association.
Oregon head coach Nils Schyllander said he was happy about the effort his second-year player gave after losing her first match of the season.
“It was a big win for Dominika,” said Schyllander, who is in his third season as head coach at Oregon. “Any time you pick up a win against a ranked player, it gives you confidence.”
On the doubles side, Dieskova and senior Daria Panova were successful in their opening round matchup against 60th-ranked Marianne Baker and Romana But of Maryland, 8-6. Despite having only played just one career doubles match together, Dieskova and Panova earned a No. 30 preseason ranking.
Panova is Oregon’s top returning senior this season after having won three Pacific-10 Conference singles titles in her career and earning the No. 12 ranking as a singles player. She is also one singles victory shy of becoming the all-time career leader in wins at Oregon, passing Krissy Barger who had 73 from 1991-94.
Panova is scheduled to compete in the singles main draw competition as the No. 7 seed this weekend.
Men also see mixed results
The Oregon men also saw causes for celebration and disappointment as they competed in the 2004 Icy Hot/ITA
All-American Tournament in Chattanooga, Tenn., this week.
Senior Manuel Kost, one of Oregon’s top returning players, won his first round match in the singles main draw against North Carolina State’s Conor Taylor in straight sets, 6-3 and 6-2. Kost, ranked No. 30 in the nation, will now move on to the round of 32.
Fellow senior Sven Swinnen, however, had a disappointing showing in the tournament. Swinnen, ranked No. 12 in the nation, lost his first round match to Boise State’s Luke Shields, 6-2 and 6-1.
Swinnen moved on to the consolation bracket where he was again defeated in straight sets. Louisiana State’s Jason Hazley dominated the first set and narrowly won the second, 6-1 and 7-5.

Alex Tam is a freelance reporter for the Daily Emerald