ASU tennis continued its hot start in Pac-12 play by ending No. 30 Oregon's nine-game win streak.
The No. 25 Sun Devils, who won 4-3, now have four consecutive Pac-12 wins, including three straight on the road to improve to 4-1 in conference play and 10-4 overall. The team has not lost a match since dropping its Pac-12 opener to second ranked California on March 4.
"Oregon is a really good team, they make you work for everything," head coach Sheila McInerney said in a phone call. "It was another big win on the road against a team we could see again in the Pac-12 or NCAA tournament"
ASU started the day off well, making quick work of the doubles point as it has for much of the season. Seniors Desirae Krawczyk and Stephanie Vlad picked up a 6-1 win over Oregon's second pairing of Alyssa Tobita and Nia Rose. Junior Kassidy Jump and freshman Sammi Hampton won by the same score on court number three to secure the point for ASU.
In singles, junior Ebony Panoho was first off the court, grabbing a straight set victory over Rose to give the Sun Devils a 2-0 lead. Jump, who finished second, suffered the first loss of the match for ASU (7-5, 6-4). Ranked 54th nationally, Jump had won each of her last three matches coming into the day.
"She had her chances, but she just couldn't take advantage," McInerney said. "She's been carrying us these last few matches so it was nice to pick her up."
The Sun Devils took the next two matches to secure the team competition with four points. Krawczyk rebounded from what McInerney called her worst match of the semester against Colorado with a 7-6(3), 6-2 victory over Oregon's Kennan Johnson. Junior Gussie O'Sullivan earned a straight set win on court six as well to earn the fourth and final point. The two wins proved vital as Oregon would take the next two matches on courts five and four respectively to make the final score 4-3.
"Let's put it this way: It's a lot easier to watch those last two matches when you know you've got that fourth point," McInerney said. "That's better for my stress level."
The Sun Devils will return to the Whiteman Tennis Center Saturday to begin a stretch of three straight non-conference matches against San Diego State.
Reach the reporter at mfaye@asu.edu of follow @mattGfaye on Twitter.
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