More than two years ago, Davina Mendiburu was quickly becoming one of the rising stars of Oregon tennis. She was voted the team’s most valuable player following her freshman campaign in 2001, when she racked up a 16-7 singles record.
In her sophomore season, Mendiburu had already garnered 31 career singles victories — on pace to be in the top five all-time in career singles victories at Oregon. The Ducks finished that season 14-11, their first winning record in six years.
Everything was going as planned for Mendiburu as she entered her junior season two years ago. The Ducks had a solid core that consisted of Mendiburu, Daria Panova and Courtney Nagle and had hopes of making an NCAA Tournament appearance.
In the first regular season match of the
2003 season, the Ducks traveled to Boulder to play Colorado in what would be a turning point in Mendiburu’s career. The match was
close throughout as Oregon held a 3-2 advantage, needing just one more match to clinch the victory. Two more matches remained,
including Mendiburu’s.
The 22-year-old Mendiburu was on the verge of closing out the Ducks’ first win on the season when she led 3-1 in the final set. In the next game, Mendiburu led 40-15 and was about to take a commanding 4-1 lead.
“I remember I was coming back big time and you could tell the girl was starting to doubt,” Mendiburu said. “I had the edge over her and I felt so good.”
Never did she know that her next serve would be the last point of her junior season.
“I thought the girl was going to hit it down the line and she hit cross court and my foot got stuck and my knee shifted,” Mendiburu said. “Then I heard a huge pop and next thing I remember I was on the ground screaming and crying.”

Oregon head coach Nils Schyllander said he wasn’t on the court when it happened, but he recalled hearing a “loud scream.”
“We saw her go down and we knew it was really bad right away,” he said.
The diagnosis later showed a torn anterior cruciate ligament and an injured meniscus in her right knee, which meant a lost season and months of rehabilitation ahead.
One of the most promising careers at Oregon was spiraling in the opposite direction.
“At the time it was horrible,” Mendiburu said. “I couldn’t travel with my team and I was stuck here doing my rehab.”
Teammates were also aware that one of their top players was disheartened because she wanted to contribute to the team so badly.
“She was very down,” doubles partner Ester Bak said. “Just like a lot of athletes get down when they’re injured when they’re not able to do something that they love. I know she loves playing tennis.”
But Mendiburu refused to believe her tennis career was over. In the eight months following that Colorado match, Mendiburu worked everyday on getting the strength back in her knee.
“It never occurred to me that I would never play again,” Mendiburu said. “I was doing the rehab and working my butt off because I wanted to be back.”
When she finally returned to the tennis courts in September 2003, her coaches and teammates saw a different type of player, one who attacked more than before the injury.
“I think in a way, (the injury) was positive and it really put things into perspective for her and she realized how much she missed playing,” Schyllander said. “When she came back, she really played more aggressive.”
In her first season back from injury, Mendiburu recorded a then career-high 18 singles victories and anchored the No. 4 position in the lineup.
“It seems after my surgery I found the game I wanted to play and I stuck with it,” Mendiburu said. “And since then, I’ve played pretty much the way I’ve been wanting to play — being aggressive and consistent.”
After Oregon’s subpar 10-15 record in 2003, the Ducks bounced back to a 17-9 overall record when Mendiburu returned in 2004. Oregon also appeared in the NCAA
Tournament and recorded a program-best
No. 23 national ranking.
“It was huge (to have her back), not only from an athletic standpoint, but she was always a leader on the team,” Schyllander said. “She’s a player that the other players look up to, not only on the court, but off the court as a friend and as a teammate.”
After battling hard to come back from her ACL injury, Mendiburu, a redshirt senior, has returned to have her best season. She set a new career-high with 24 singles victories, adding to her career total of 73, which ranks her second all-time at Oregon. She then capped her Pacific-10 Conference career by winning the Pac-10 doubles invitational championship with Bak on April 24. The Ducks are also headed to the NCAA Tournament, which begins today against Fresno State.
“I learned a lot from that (injury), like being a stronger person, and it made me realize how much I love tennis and how much it was important to me,” Mendiburu said. “When you’re a senior and you’re on the court, you appreciate every moment you have and you just give it your all.”