OJAI, Calif.— The seventh-seeded University of Oregon men’s tennis team fell to the sixth-seeded Utah Utes 4-3 Wednesday afternoon at the Pac-12 Championships in Ojai, Calif. Utah advances to the quarterfinals.

 

In doubles play, No. 67 Jeff Mullen and Robin Cambier topped Ben Tasevac and Dmytro Mamedov 8-5 in the top spot, but the Utes were able to take the matches on Courts 2 and 3 for the doubles point. Alex Rovello and Daniel Sardu fell to Cedric Willems and Slim Hamza 8-2 on Court 2, while Aaron Clissold and Daan Maasland lost 8-5 to Devin Lane and Alejandro Medinilla.

 

“For some reason we came out tentative in doubles and it carried over into singles,” said head coach Nils Schyllander.

 

Oregon responded quickly in singles, however, as Sardu claimed a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Willems on Court 5. A two and a half hour rain delay ensued before one of the tightest matches in Pac-12 Championships history continued on. After the break, Mullen fell to Mamedov 6-3, 6-4 on Court 2 and Lova Randriamampandry lost to Tasevac 7-6, 7-5 on Court 6 to put Utah back on top. Rovello took down Lane 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 on Court 4 in an intense match that required a strong comeback. In the top spot, Cambier topped No. 107 Hamza 4-6, 6-4, 6-0 to tie things up and put all eyes on Court 3 to see who would advance. Freshman sensation Maasland fell to Medinilla 7-5, 3-6, 7-5 in another extremely close match, and Utah sealed the victory 4-3.

 

“We had a rain delay and the boys came roaring back with the patented Duck energy and we put ourselves in a position to win the match, but unfortunately we fell just short,” added Schyllander.

 

Oregon finishes the season 16-8 overall and 2-6 in the Pac-12.