Author Archives | Maverick Pallack

Alyssa Tobita was an underdog, but after four years, she is now on top

Posted on 30 April 2018.

Oregon women’s tennis team senior Alyssa Tobita has used an underdog persona to piece together one of the best careers in program history.

Tobita is from Mililani, Hawaii, which came with some disadvantages during the recruitment and development process. Being outside the continental United States, it was harder for her to compete against schools in other states.

“Alyssa’s kinda always been one that’s enjoyed the underdog story,” head coach Alison Silverio said. “She’s been an underdog in many ways. Since she’s been here, she’s been a topdog.”

Tobita is currently ranked No. 43 in singles and is part of two different top-125 doubles pairings. She is ranked No. 34 with her old partner, Shweta Sangwan and is ranked No. 88 with her current partner, Rifanty Kahfiani.

Her name also fills the record books. She is third all-time in wins with 77, and is half of the second and third winningest doubles-pairs with Sangwan and another former partner, Nia Rose.

Tobita has won at least 18 matches every season, with her sophomore season being the winningest with 21. The senior saved her best season for last, going 18-10, with six of those wins against nationally ranked opponents.

Although she struggled mid-season, she really turned it on in crunch time. Tobita won her last five matches to close out the regular season – three against top-125 opponents.

“Since she came here her freshman year, she’s bought into what we’re about and what our culture is,” Silverio said. “This year has been no different. She is one of our most reliable players. She is one of our most consistent players. All the credit to her for the work and the preparation that she puts into every match.”

Before Tobita and Silverio arrived at Oregon, the program struggled to win matches. After a 7-15 finish in the 2014 season, Oregon needed an infusion of fresh talent and new leadership. They got both of those in new-recruit Tobita and the hiring of Silverio.

“I came into the program with coach Alison,” Tobita said. “Before that, we were bottom of the Pac-12 and didn’t know what to expect. Now to be here and play at this high of a level, it’s kinda unreal.”

Tobita was already signed before Silverio was hired, but that doesn’t mean the first-time head coach was unaware of the talent she was inheriting.

“She was a top-level recruit,” Silverio said. “I couldn’t wait to work with her. It’s no surprise to me, any of our staff or her teammates that she’s having the success she is.”

This year, the No. 30 Oregon women’s tennis team is finishing its best season ever. The team is 15-9 and awaiting its seeding in the NCAA tournament. Although the Ducks made an appearance last year for the first time in 10 seasons, postseason dreams are still a new and exciting prospect for the up-and-coming program.

Earlier this season, the Ducks were ranked as high as No. 17 in the nation, the highest in program history, and Tobita is one of the main reasons. Tobita has won her match in 12 of the Oregon wins this season.

Through her adaptability, leadership and versatile playing style, Tobita has formed many great relationships on the team.

“She’s great,” Kahfiani said. “I love her.”

Oregon’s topdog is projected to be playing a lot more matches for the Ducks. Besides the NCAA team tournament, Tobita could get an invite for both the singles and the doubles tournament.

Follow Maverick Pallack on Twitter @mavpallack

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Oregon baseball wins game and series over USC on walk-off double

Posted on 29 April 2018.

Oregon catcher Ray Soderman had gone 19 at bats without a hit. On Sunday, in the bottom of the tenth, he broke out of that slump with a clutch, one-out opposite field walk-off double to score Daniel Patzlaff and lead the Ducks to a 2-1 win over USC to win the series.

After the game, Soderman immediately credited Patzlaff for getting on base and Taylor Travess bunting him over, but was interrupted during his interview by multiple Gatorade baths and shaving cream pies.

“That pitcher was throwing all fastballs,” Soderman said as he wiped shaving cream from his face. “Basically I swung and found some green, barely, and it worked I guess.”

There was some debate on whether to pinch-hit for the eventual hero, but head coach George Horton trusted Soderman would be able to get the job done.

“There’s nobody who works harder on the team than Ray,” Horton said. “I am kind of corny when it comes to that. I think the game rewards guys that work hard and he works hard.”

Starting pitcher Kolby Somers pitched well in an attempt to get his first win since his first career start against UC Davis, March 10. The lefty used the confidence of having the lead for the first time since the UC Davis win to go a career-high 6.1 innings without giving up a run.

“It’s always nice to get runs on the board,” Somers said. “It gives you more confidence going out there. … I couldn’t care less what our offense is doing honestly.”

Somers only allowed two hits and struck out four before giving way to Parker Kelly during the seventh inning. Kelly dominated in his 1.2 innings, which put Horton in a bind on whether to stick with him or put in closer Ryne Nelson.

“When you have an electric arm like that, you’d second guess yourself not going to Nelson,” Horton said. “At least Nelly made them earn it. It could have been worse. We could have gone behind there and lost the game.”

Nelson switched from shortstop to the mound, looking to close out the win. He got the Trojans down to their final out, but two straight singles tied the game at one. The Trojans then loaded the bases, but Nelson was able to escape further damage.

The Ducks led early, executing their small-ball approach to perfection. After a Jakob Goldfarb lead-off single in the first, Johnny DeLuca came to the plate looking to get him over.

The center fielder had a perfect bunt toward first base that was able to pull USC first baseman Dillon Paulson far enough off the bag where he was able to beat second baseman Ben Ramirez to the bag.

“We’re not swinging the bats great,” Horton said. “We do pride ourselves on executing. When you get leadoff hitters on and you can execute a bunt like DeLuca…. That ended up being the reason we got one run.”

After a Kyle Kasser strikeout, Goldfarb and DeLuca both stole in order to get into scoring position for Spencer Steer. Steer was able to get the job done with a sac-fly to right, which gave the Ducks the 1-0 lead.

Oregon will try and use this win as momentum toward a late-season push. The Ducks play No. 7 Oregon State this Tuesday as they look to get their first win over the in-state rival since May of 2016.

Follow Maverick Pallack on Twitter @mavpallack

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Oregon left tackle Tyrell Crosby drafted No. 153 overall by the Detroit Lions

Posted on 28 April 2018.

Former Oregon left tackle Tyrell Crosby was drafted in the fifth round, No. 153 overall, by the Detroit Lions on Saturday in the 2018 NFL Draft. The four-year tackle was the 14th tackle drafted and the second Duck, behind running back Royce Freeman. He is the first Oregon offensive lineman drafted since his predecessor, Jake Fisher, was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2015.

Plenty of NFL Mock Drafts and analysts had Crosby rated as the No. 3 tackle, a top-100 overall player and a day-two pick. Ultimately he fell to day-three, and will compete for a roster spot and playing-time.

https://twitter.com/Tyrellcrosby/status/990298431817072640

The Lions have two big-money tackles on their roster already in Taylor Decker and Rick Wagner. There is still a chance that an injury or position switch could help Crosby find the field his rookie season.

Crosby had a good senior season, starting all 13 games. He allowed zero quarterback sacks and hits anchoring the left side of the line. He was named first-team all-Pac-12 and the Ed Moshofsky Award winner, given to the best Oregon offensive lineman, voted by teammates.

Crosby also showed high-character in his time at Oregon. He contributed with the Doernbecher #StompOutCancer uniforms the Ducks wore against Nebraska. The Nevada native also changed numbers from 73 to 58 for the Las Vegas Bowl to honor the 58 victims from last year’s mass shooting.

Royce Freeman drafted by Denver Broncos in third round

Posted on 27 April 2018.

Oregon running back Royce Freeman was drafted in the third round, No. 71 overall, by the Denver Broncos on Friday at the 2018 NFL Draft.

The former Duck finished his career as not only Oregon’s all-time rush-leader with 5,621 yards, but as the Pac-12 leader as well.

Freeman leaves Eugene with his name filling both Oregon and the Pac-12’s record books. He is Oregon’s all-time leader in total touchdowns (64), rushing touchdowns (60), all-purpose yards, points scored, 100-yard games and carries. He rushed for over 1,000 yards three times in his career, including 1,475 yards last season with the Ducks. He also ranked tenth in the country in rushing yards last season.

The four-year contributor is also Oregon’s first player drafted since 2016 when the San Francisco 49ers picked defensive lineman DeForest Buckner (first round) and the Philadelphia Eagles picked linebacker Joe Walker (seventh round). Freeman is also the first running back out of Oregon picked since the 49ers picked LaMichael James in 2012 when James was selected No. 61 overall.

In a playing-time perspective for the Broncos, Freeman will get chances right away. Denver’s leading-rusher last season, C.J. Anderson, is currently a free agent. Backs that will compete with Freeman are former Utah running back Devontae Booker and De’Angelo Henderson.

Offensive tackle Tyrell Crosby is yet to be selected in the draft, but he is expected to get picked anytime now.

Follow Maverick Pallack on Twitter @mavpallack

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No. 30 Oregon women’s tennis lose 4-3 heartbreaker to No. 13 UCLA in second round of Pac-12 Championships

Posted on 26 April 2018.

The No. 30 Oregon women’s tennis team’s quest for a Pac-12 Championship ended today with a heart-breaking 4-3 loss in the second round to the overpowering No. 13 UCLA.

The Ducks rallied from 2-0 and 3-2 deficits, but were unable to pull off the upset win in Ojai, Calif.

Shweta Sangwan and Julia Lilien were able to tie the match at two before UCLA retook the lead. Daniela Nasser then tied the match again before the Ducks ultimately fell.

Because of UCLA’s dominant doubles play, the Ducks were down early. No. 88 Rifanty Kahfiani and Alyssa Tobita lost to No. 56 Gabby Andrews and Ayan Broomfield 6-1. UCLA then took the point when Alaina Miller and Ena Shibahara defeated Julia Lilien and Paiton Wagner.

Oregon’s victories were hard fought. Sangwan and Nasser each defeated a top-ranked opponent. Sangwan downed No. 30 Jada Hart 6-3, 6-1 and Nasser defeated No. 59 Abi Altick 7-5, 6-2. The win was Nasser’s first of her career over a nationally ranked opponent. Lilien’s win was equally impressive as she defeated senior Terri Fleming 6-4, 7-5 in the No. 3 position.

UCLA was able to hold off the Ducks in the end. No. 43 Tobita lost to No. 14 Shibahara 6-4, 6-2, which put the Bruins up 2-0 in the match. After Oregon tied the match, Miller, who was playing out of the No. 6 position, retook the lead for UCLA. The highly-ranked six position defeated Wagner 6-1, 7-6. The clinching win for the Bruins came from Broomfield. She defeated Julia Eshet in the fifth position 7-5, 6-4 to clinch the match for the two seeded Bruins.

Oregon’s hope for a Pac-12 title will have to wait at least another year, but given its status in the rankings and the hard-fought performance against UCLA today, they should expect to be playing in the NCAA tournament.

Follow Maverick Pallack on Twitter @mavpallack

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No. 30 Oregon dominates in first round of Pac-12 Championships, takes on No. 13 UCLA next

Posted on 26 April 2018.

The No. 30 Oregon women’s tennis kicked off its Pac-12 Championship play with its second consecutive 4-0 win over Utah, having defeated the Utes April 15, in the regular season finale.

Although Utah was the No. 10 seed, the Ducks must be pleased with the repeated dominant results over the Pac-12 foe.

Today started out very similar to their previous match, as No. 88 Rifanty Kahfiani and Alyssa Tobita defeated Taylor Calton and Whitney Turley again 6-3. The only difference in the one-sided doubles match was that the freshman duo of Julia Lilien and Paiton Wagner won their match 6-3 over Brianna Chisholm and Victoria Robertson 6-3 instead of the No. 69 pair of Shweta Sangwan and Julia Eshet.

Singles play remained an almost-replica of the Senior Day victory. Daniela Nasser improved on her previous result over Calton, winning 6-1, 6-2 and Wagner defeated Robertson for the second time on the day, this time in singles play, 6-4, 6-3.

Eshet moved up to the No. 5 position this time around and clinched the match for her second win over Utah this season, downing Turley 6-2, 6-4.

This result should be a much-needed confidence booster as the Ducks remain in Ojai, California, to take on the No. 2 seed UCLA Bruins for the second round of the tournament. Although the Ducks fell 4-0 to the Bruins on March 18, the Ducks haven’t dropped a point since the April 8 loss to Stanford three matches ago.

Thursday’s match against No. 13 UCLA will start at 2 p.m. with the Ducks looking to pull off their second victory over UCLA in program history.

Follow Maverick Pallack on Twitter @mavpallack

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Oregon men’s tennis built with international players

Posted on 25 April 2018.

Building collegiate tennis teams based on similar cultural backgrounds has been a known strategy, such as UCLA and its majority of Californians, or Drake University with eight players from the United Kingdom. However, the No. 36 Oregon men’s tennis team has one of the more globally diverse teams in the NCAA.

“We’re a mixed bag of candy,” said head coach Nils Schyllander, who is from Sweden. “We can all learn from each other and draw from each other. Once you get here and go through those locker room doors, it’s team only. We leave our egos outside.”

Oregon is 16-8 on the season. Seven players have winning records in singles play and the team won seven of its last nine matches to close out the season, securing a first-round bye in the Pac-12 Tournament.

Out of the nine Ducks, two are from the United States (Ty Gentry, Washington, and Ethan Young-Smith, Oregon), two are from Europe (Thomas Laurent, France, and Simon Stevens, Belgium), one is from Australia (Cormac Clissold) and four are from Asia (Akihiro Tanaka and Riki Oshima, Japan, Armando Soemarno, Indonesia, and Charles Roberts, Thailand).

“This team is highly diverse,” Tanaka said. “Most of the men come from a variety of countries, so we understand cultural differences. It’s really fun and a great opportunity to have fun with friends.”

The team is united and feed off of each other’s success. Stevens, Clissold, Young-Smith and Gentry are fiery and bring energy to the courts. When one of them wins a point, the other five courts know and want to respond with their own yell right away. Roberts and Soemarno have plenty of experience to share in doubles play and are great teammates when off the court. Laurent is humble with his immense talent and calm demeanor, which has inspired and challenged his teammates. All these traits have helped others improve and brought the team closer.

“I think that having that many cultures is very good,” said Stevens. “We all learned tennis in a different way…. I think that we can all bring these little things. If we find a good way to add it up, it’s a great mix.”

Of course, leaving your home country to compete in the United States is not easy. Every player goes through similar struggles, adapting to college life in Eugene, and transitioning from individual competition to a hybrid of team and individual tennis.

It can be especially difficult for January enrollees. Freshman Riki Oshima left high school in Japan to start college and tennis at the beginning of winter term, which forced a quick need to adapt. Oshima was nervous and started off his career 5-5.

Fortunately he has teammates that went through a similar journey. By listening to upperclassmen like Tanaka, Oshima is turning his slow start into a productive first season. He went 11-6, and clinched multiple matches for the team.

“To play for a team is different than playing individually,” Schyllander said. “Now he is starting to figure it out and really starting to find his identity. He’s constructing the points much better.”

With Tanaka, Stevens and Clissold set to graduate in June, Oshima looks forward to helping incoming teammates through the same things he experienced.

“Those guys helped me a lot,” Oshima said. “I don’t want them to graduate, I have good relationships. When I turn to sophomore, I will help freshmen.”

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No. 36 Oregon men’s tennis clinches four-seed in Pac-12 Championships with upset win over No. 31 Cal

Posted on 21 April 2018.

The No. 36 Oregon men’s tennis team split its Bay Area roadtrip with a high-quality 4-2 win over No. 31 Cal on Saturday. The win is the Ducks’ first ever win over Cal.

The win puts the Ducks at 16-8 overall and 4-4 in Pac-12 play. After losing four straight matches in early March, the Ducks won seven of their last nine to close out the season.

Oregon was down early, dropping the doubles point for the second consecutive match. Charles Roberts and Armando Soemarno lost their match to Ben Draper and Dominic Barretto 6-1, which gave Cal the advantage. Can Kaya and Jack Molloy then clinched the point for the Golden Bears with a 6-3 over Ty Gentry and Simon Stevens.

The deficit then extended to two, after Molloy downed Akihiro Tanaka 6-1, 6-1 for the first point of singles play.

Despite being down 2-0, the veteran Ducks squad wasn’t shaken, with five of the six Ducks taking their first set. Stevens returned to the lineup after being out of singles play yesterday against Stanford. The senior leader was back at No. 2 with everyone else sliding down one position. Stevens played well in his return to the court, defeating J.T. Nishimura 6-3, 6-3.

Gentry tied the match up at two, defeating Draper 6-2, 7-6(2). Cormac Clissold then downed Paul Barretto 6-3, 6-4 to put the Ducks one win away from victory.

Luckily, the two remaining Ducks had plenty of experience in that field. No. 24 Thomas Laurent, who clinched the match against Utah last week, and Riki Oshima, who has clinched multiple matches in his freshman season, were in a race to see who would get the result.

Laurent wound up victorious in both his match and the race, defeating No. 58 Billy Griffith 7-6(2), 7-5.

This win was a huge result for the Ducks as it not only vaults them ahead of Cal in the Pac-12 standings, but puts them in fourth place, which warrants a first-round bye in the Pac-12 Championships.

The tournament starts Wednesday, April 25 in Ojai, California. Seeding has yet to be finalized, but Oregon defeated all the lower seeds except Arizona State this season.

Follow Maverick Pallack on Twitter @mavpallack

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No. 36 Oregon men’s tennis drops match at No. 4 Stanford

Posted on 20 April 2018.

The No. 36 Oregon men’s tennis team kicked off its final regular season weekend in the Bay Area with a 4-1 loss to No. 4 Stanford.

The Ducks went into Friday having won six of their past seven matches, but were no match against the top-5 Cardinal.

Although the match did not go the team’s way, they still had a decent performance against a highly-ranked Stanford squad. The Cardinal possess two of the top-50 doubles pairs and three of the top-100 singles players.

Sophomore Ty Gentry won the only point for the Ducks, downing No. 90 Sameer Kumar 6-3, 6-3 in straight sets. The win was Gentry’s first in the No. 3 position. With three seniors graduating, Gentry will most likely become a regular in the top-3 of the lineup next season.

Gentry’s move up was necessary because the usual No. 2 position, Simon Stevens, was absent from the lineup. Ethan Young-Smith made his fourth start of the season in place of Stevens, fighting hard in the six position and earning an unfinished match against William Genesen.

Other changes in the lineup included Akihiro Tanaka moving from third to second and Riki Oshima moving from six to five.

In the No. 1 spot, per usual, was No. 24 Thomas Laurent. He was matched-up against No. 8 Tom Fawcett. The highly-anticipated top-25 matchup wound up going unfinished however with Fawcett leading.

For Oregon’s offense to thrive, the young wide receivers need to step up

Posted on 19 April 2018.

Quarterback Justin Herbert is one of the favorites to win the Heisman trophy this season. In order to do that, he needs to make big, flashy plays. That also means he needs highlight-reel plays by wide receivers, which have been hard to find the last couple seasons.

Oregon needs to manufacture those plays from someone, and the like candidates this season are Dillon Mitchell, Johnny Johnson III and Brenden Schooler. All three performed well in their first meaningful opportunities last season, which impressed Herbert.

“Those guys are playmakers,” Herbert said. “It makes my job easier.”

Wide receiver production has declined since Marcus Mariota’s 2014 Heisman season. That year, wide receivers had 2,796 yards, and that is discounting the 1,003 yards leading receiver Byron Marshall had out of the backfield.

In 2015, Vernon Adams Jr.’s one year at quarterback, receivers had 2,450 total yards. Last season, wide receivers had 1,618 yards. Some of the decline was due to Herbert missing five games because of a broken collarbone. Oregon also won’t have Charles Nelson working the slot as both a big-play threat and a security blanket for quarterbacks.

The offense would realistically need at least a 950-yard increase in receiving yards from last season — averaging between Mariota and Adams Jr. — for Herbert to get an invitation to New York.

Oregon Ducks wide receiver Johnny Johnson III (80) dives to make a catch while being chased by Nebraska Cornhuskers defensive back Lamar Jackson (21). (Adam Eberhardt/Emerald)

Schooler, one of those much-needed playmakers, performed well in his first season at receiver. The former safety netted three touchdowns and averaged 13.7 yards per catch. Now, with a full year of practice and the playbook, he has shifted his focus from learning to leading.

“Last year, I think [Schooler] was a guy that didn’t get the ball as much as he needed,” Herbert said. “[Schooler, Mitchell and Johnson III] are athletic, so they’ve been able to make plays regardless of the position.”

Mitchell led the team in both receptions (42) and receiving yards (517) in his sophomore season, but that didn’t slow down his offseason workouts.

“No matter how many years I’m here, it starts over each offseason,” Mitchell said. “If you don’t do anything in the offseason, I feel like it all goes away.”

Wide receivers coach Michael Johnson believes Mitchell will be a guy Herbert can lean on as the top receiver.

“If you’re gonna be the number one guy, you have to be a guy we can count on each and every week and it starts with habits,” Michael Johnson said. “We’re gonna make sure we get him to come to work every day. The older they get, the more they are able to handle that situation.”

Johnson III is the third major returner. He led the team with two catches of over 50 yards in his freshman season. That kind of big-play potential, paired with a healthy Herbert, should provide a major uptick in production.

“It’s great,” Johnson III said. “He can throw you open even if you aren’t all the way open. There’s just that chemistry on the field. It’s unspoken.”

Redshirt-freshman Daewood Davis, sophomore scout-team standout Demetri Burch, special teamer Jaylon Redd and early-enrollee Jalen Hall are some of the newcomers fighting for passes from Herbert.

“Our quarterback is pretty special,” Michael Johnson said. “Guys like being around him. He can get you the ball. All you gotta do is run and get open and he’ll find you. It’s a great opportunity for a young wide receiver.”

Follow Maverick Pallack on Twitter @mavpallack

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