Facing elimination can bring the best out in a team.
Needing a win in its final conference match of the season to qualify for the NCAA tournament, the Oregon men’s tennis team is backed into a corner.
The No. 55 Ducks are having their best Pacific-10 Conference season in school history, but it will all mean nothing should the team fail to reach the NCAAs. On April 7, Oregon earned its first Pac-10 win in more than five years. Two days later, the Ducks made it two in a row for the first time ever.
Saturday, the Ducks’ post-season fate will be decided when No. 28 Washington comes to town. The two teams have identical 2-4 conference records and so the winner of tomorrow’s match will earn fourth place in the Pac-10 outright.
“[The match] has big implications and our guys are aware of that,” head coach Chris Russell said.
The two teams tangled earlier this season on April 2, with Washington prevailing in Seattle, 4-3.
“The guys had them in a battle,” Russell said. “It was the closest we’d come to beating Washington in a long time. We have to be tougher mentally and really finish our matches.”
Home field advantage was a major factor in the earlier match.
“It was a very vocal crowd [in Seattle],” Russell said. “If we can plug in the crowd thing and get that intensity, that will be a big help.”
The match will be the fourth time this season that the teams have faced each other. The Ducks and Huskies participated in two preseason tournaments in the Northwest.
Since the April 2 matchup, both teams have fallen to the Los Angeles schools. On April 7, Washington lost to Arizona State, a team Oregon defeated 5-2.
Leading the Ducks into action will be streaking seniors Guillermo Carter and Joaquin Hamdan. Carter continues his month-long stay in the ITA rankings at No. 45 while Hamdan has won seven out of his last nine matches to push his overall record to 18-11.
A freshman duo also give the Ducks a boost. Oded Teig and Leslie Eisinga are first and third among the team in total wins. Sophomore Thomas Schneiter has made several appearances in the national rankings this season.
Washington counters with No. 98 freshman Matt Hanlin, who defeated Carter earlier this season.