The No. 33 Oregon men’s tennis team kicked off its NCAA Tournament with an impressive 4-0 win over No. 27 Dartmouth.
The match marked the first top-30 win of the season for the Ducks, who have really hit their stride at the perfect time. Since the 4-3 loss to No. 13 USC on March 10, Oregon has now won eight of its last 11, including five against top-50 opponents.
The match started with the Ducks getting wins from the two and three positions in doubles. Ty Gentry and Simon Stevens got their now team-leading No. 24 win, downing Roko Glasnovic and Casey Ross 6-3. Armando Soemarno and Charles Roberts then won the doubles point by defeating Peter Conkin and Max Fliegner 6-4.
Akihiro Tanaka picked up his first career NCAA Tournament victory with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Dan Martin.
Thomas Laurent continued his winning ways, defeating No. 119 Charlie Broom, 6-3, 6-3. This marked Laurent’s fifth straight win and also his fourth straight over a ranked opponent.
Gentry closed out the sweep with a strong 6-4, 6-2 win. That victory was also Gentry’s first NCAA Tournament win.
Awaiting the Ducks in the next round will either be No. 50 Utah State or the host school, No. 8 TCU.
If Utah State is able to upset TCU, Oregon has shown the ability to dominate the Aggies, after beating them 4-0 on Feb. 28.
No matter the opponent, Oregon’s second round match of the NCAA Tournament will be tomorrow, Sunday, at 11 a.m.
Follow Maverick Pallack on Twitter @mavpallack