– On Thursday, the University of Oregon dropped its counterclaim against the lawsuit filed by a student that claimed Oregon men’s basketball head coach Dana Altman and members of the UO administration acted negligently in recruiting Brandon Austin. Thursday’s retraction of the counterclaim was largely a result of public unrest following Oregon’s original filing. Public action to change the UO’s stance included a web petition that collected over 1,500 signatures that encouraged Oregon to reconsider the claim.

– Oregon offensive lineman Andre Yruretagoyena is leaving the team for “personal reasons”, the program announced on Thursday. Yruretagoyena, who missed nine games due to injury in 2014, would have entered his senior season this fall.

– Although Jillian Alleyne posted her 67th career double-double with 33 points and 16 rebounds Thursday night, her individual performance was not enough to carry the Oregon women’s basketball team a win against the California Golden Bears. The Ducks lost to Cal 74-59. 

– Fresh off of their first loss of the season to the No. 7 Baylor Bears, the Oregon softball team will face the defending national champions, No. 1 Florida, on Friday at the San Diego Classic in San Diego, California.

– Despite decreased membership, Oregon club triathlon continues to train six days a week in preparation for its first race, the March Triathlon, in San Luis Obispo, California over Spring Break.

Follow Sarah Scrivens on Twitter @sarahescrivens 

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Coming off of two road losses and a bye week, the Oregon men’s tennis team returned to action at the Student Tennis Center on Friday and swiftly knocked out visiting Nebraska, 7-0. The Ducks maintain a perfect 6-0 record at home on the season with the victory.

Oregon is now at 7-3 for the 2014-15 season. Nebraska, who has yet to play a home match this spring season, is now 2-4.

“We showed up with a lot of energy from the get-go,” said Oregon head coach Nils Schyllander. “We played good from top to bottom, singles and doubles. It was a pretty complete team effort.”

The Ducks started the match strong with a sweep in doubles to win the point. The No. 1 team of Kevin Farin and Jayson Amos led Oregon’s campaign for the doubles point and made quick work of Nebraska’s Scott Elsass and Bradford Zitsch, 6-1.

Daan Maasland and Joey Swaysland won the point for the Ducks with a 6-3 win over Nebraska’s Dusty Boyer and Linus Erhart. The freshman No. 3 duo of Simon Stevens and Cormac Clissold were holding onto a 5-4 lead when play was stopped.

Stevens made a solid contribution later in singles, when he dished out a 6-0, 6-1 win over the Cornhuskers’ Chris Hogbarski. Clissold was next to win in singles, with a 6-1, 6-2 victory against Nebraska’s Vasileios Stavropoulos.

Farin clinched the win for Oregon over Marc Hermann 6-1, 6-4 on court four.

Though they had the win secured, both teams played out the rest of the matches. Amos and Nebraska’s Andrew Dzulynsky battled it out in a match that ended in Amos’ favor, 7-5, 6-4. Maasland and Boyer had one of the day’s longest match-ups that ended in favor of Maasland and Oregon, at 6-0, 7-6 ,(9-7).

Oregon senior Daniel Sardu ended the day with hard-fought three-set win over Erhart, 6-7(5), 6-2, 10-8.

Sardu’s singles win also marked his 70^th career singles win, moving him into sole possession of third place in UO history for career singles wins.

“It feels good, but it’s always team first. I didn’t know actually that I had 70 wins, but that makes me proud obviously,” said Sardu with a smile. “But it’s good that we beat a pretty good team 7-0, that’s first.”

Oregon will return to the Student Tennis Center on Sunday, Feb. 22 at 11 a.m. to host No. 65 Santa Clara.

“Santa Clara are tough out, they got us last year down there, so we need to be mentally ready,” said Schyllander. “We need to enjoy this one for a couple of hours then get back to business.”

 Follow Sarah Scrivens on Twitter @sarahescrivens

On Friday, Jan. 30, the University of Oregon men’s tennis team celebrated a sweep against Nevada at home in Eugene, 7-0. The day was also marked by another positive event for Oregon tennis: It was the first time varsity tennis matches were streamed live online.

“Live streaming has been extremely exciting and a great advantage for not only our fans and supporters, but also as something that helps with our team development,” said women’s tennis head coach Alison Silverio. “It is also a huge recruiting tool, being able to say that your matches will be available live and people can watch you from anywhere.”

The men’s and women’s tennis programs are two of the last varsity athletic teams at the UO to provide streaming of their competitions, aside from golf and cross-country, which are limited due to their expansive outdoor venues.

“I wish I had had this when I was playing there,” said former Oregon tennis player Robin Cambier. “It is good for the current players because after matches you can get your match burned right away to use for practice.”

Equipping Oregon’s indoor tennis facilities with the right equipment to provide the matches live presented its own set of challenges.

“It’s a process in order for us to stream and have the ability to do so. Things like trying to find the right equipment to stream in HD quality with a high quality signal on individual courts. It was kind of a struggle to do,” said Scott LaBounty, the UO athletic department’s director of video production. “But from hearing from coaches, it sounds like we have it better than anyone else as far as the look.”

In December 2014, the Student Tennis Center was equipped with six fixed HD Internet protocol cameras, one for each court. Each camera runs through the third party software Wowza and is then broadcasted onto the Pac-12 Networks’ website. The university’s athletic website, GoDucks.com, provides links to the Pac-12 Networks’ live video stream along with  live stats from each home match.

“To be able to stream our matches in HD is huge. Recruits, fans, families and friends will all be able to follow the Ducks. It really helps in getting exposure to the program,” said men’s tennis head coach Nils Schyllander.

Microphones were added in the tennis center at the beginning of February to round out the online viewing experience.

“Having the microphones will be great and complete the experience,” said Silverio. “It will be nice to have the chance to hear the excitement from players and fans when things are going well.”

With many players originating from nations thousands of miles away, the new system helps them share competitions with family and friends back home. Freshman Cormac Clissold, originally from Australia, said that the addition of the live stream has helped him stay in touch with his brother and former Oregon tennis player Aaron Clissold, who now resides in Hong Kong.

“He watched my match against Nevada, and he was messaging me during it. I came back to the locker room and had all the messages, so it was like he was talking to me during the match,” said Clissold. “That was pretty cool that he gets to watch live and still be involved.”

The first live stream match with sound will be available on Friday, Feb. 20 at 5:00 p.m. when the men’s tennis team hosts Nebraska at the Student Tennis Center.

The Oregon women’s tennis team took to the UO Outdoor Tennis Courts on Friday and brought home its first home win of the year over the Montana Grizzlies, 5-2.

Nia Rose and Alyssa Tobita won 6-1 in the No. 1 doubles spot, setting the Ducks off in an early lead. Though Oregon’s No. 2 duo of Marlou Kluivig and Nicole Long fell 6-4, Kadie Hueffner and Lina Åkesson were able to fight back to win 7-6 (3) to secure the doubles point for Oregon.

In singles play, Kluiving handled Montana’s Hannah Sulz at singles No. 4,  6-0, 6-2 and gave the Ducks a 2-0 lead. Following her singles win today, Kluiving now leads the team at 12-2 in singles and 4-0 in dual action.

“I started off well and playing the way I want to play,” said Kluiving. “I gained a lot of confidence that things were working out well and going pretty fast. By gaining more confidence I was able to do more; and for me it worked out well.”

The Grizzlies soon tied things up at 2-2, winning the No. 6 and No. 2 singles matches.

It was Nicole Long who bumped Oregon up to a 3-2 lead when she defeated Laurence Pelchat 6-2, 7-6 (6). Rose was also challenged in her second set, but managed to win the tiebreaker and clinch the match for Oregon with her 6-3, 7-6 (4) win at No. 1 singles.

Following two disappointing losses in their last appearances at home, the Ducks returned to practice focusing on the core elements of the game in order to improve for both of their matches this weekend.

“Our last couple of matches have felt like we came out and we were giving some free points away quickly with unforced errors,” said head coach Alison Silverio. “This last week we’ve really taken control in practice in getting back to our foundations and fundamentals of working the point and playing more within what we know we can do well.”

The Ducks will return to the Oregon Student Tennis Center on Sunday, Feb. 15 at 12 p.m. to host the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Follow Sarah Scrivens on Twitter @sarahescrivens

The Oregon women’s tennis team’s 2015 recruiting class received the No. 15 ranking by Tennisrecruiting.net on Monday. This marks the first time that the program has appeared in the site’s recruiting class rankings.

Placement of each team took into account input from junior tennis experts from around the country. Recruiting classes were based on players who have either verbally committed or signed a letter of intent during the fall signing period.

Oregon boosted it’s position after signing two five-star recruits: Daniela Nasser of Tampa, Florida, and Rebekah Anderson of La Mirada, California. The Ducks have also received a verbal commitment from five-star recruit Christi Woodson of Melbourne, Florida.

Nasser is a three-time District 10 champion at Tampa’s Academy of Holy Names in both singles and doubles. She also took the regional title as a freshman in singles and doubles. As a sophomore, Nasser reached the finals in the state 2A finals in singles and doubles. She was named to Tennis Recruiting’s Hot 100 List three separate times, twice in 2012 (#10, #12) and once in 2013 (#41). 

At the  USTA G18-16 National Championships, Anderson defeated Madison Clarke –  ranked No. 30 in the nation at the time – in straight sets 6-2, 6-0. She also took down a highly ranked blue chip recruit in No. 21 Jessica Failla at the Easter Bowl ITF Tennis Championships.

Woodson currently holds the No. 10 ranking in the state of Florida, 24th in the Southeast, and 75th nationally.

“We’re certainly grateful, and it is definitely an attribute to the work that Tony and I have been putting in on the recruiting trail – it’s nice to see that diligence pay off,” said first year women’s tennis head coach Alison Silverio. “The support we have from not only our athletic department, but the community and all of the support staff has made it possible to have a fifteenth ranking.”

The Ducks are projected to finish fourth in the Pac 12, with Stanford leading the country at No. 1, USC coming in at No. 5, Washington at No. 8, and UCLA in the No. 17 slot.

With a little over two months until signing day, coaches across the country will be continuing to secure recruits. For Oregon, that means locking in players that are a good fit both on the court and as a member of the “Duck culture.”

“We want to keep attracting character-first athletes,” said Silverio. “We are fortunate to be getting those type of student athletes, and to continue to build that tradition of excellence in our program,  it starts with bringing in the right type of recruits.”

Follow Sarah Scrivens on Twitter @sarahescrivens

The No. 43 Oregon Ducks (6-1) defeated the No. 66 Nevada Wolf Pack (0-2) for the second day in a row on Saturday, 6-1. Oregon is now a perfect 5-0 at home this season.

Coming off of a fairly quick victory on Friday, the Ducks had to mentally adjust in preparation for facing the same opponent less than 24 hours later.

“When you win as big as we did yesterday, it’s hard not to have a little bit of a mental letdown,” coach Nils Schyllander said. “Credit to Nevada; they played really hard today. I think they wanted to prove something, but we took the best shot and it was a pretty decisive 6-1 win in the end.”

Oregon started strong in doubles, with Cormac Clissold and Simon Stevens winning quickly, 6-1. Kevin Farin and Jayson Amos sealed the doubles point for the Ducks, finishing off Nevada’s Robert Allan and Moez Chargui 6-2.

Oregon’s Daan Maasland had another impressive performance in singles, taking down Andrew Poustie 6-2, 6-3. Simon Stevens was next to score for the Ducks, beating Robert Allan 6-4, 6-4.

“In singles, I just tried to have the same energy as in doubles, and I had a few possibilities to win the second set like 6-2, 6-3,” Stevens said. “At the end of the set I played better than how I opened and that made the difference for sure.”

Joey Swaysland provided the clincher for Oregon in a 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 comeback, bumping the Ducks’ lead to 4-0. Jayson Amos was next to finish for Oregon, with a solid 7-6, 6-4 win to move the score to 5-0 in favor of Oregon. Sardu chalked up the last point for the Ducks, emerging victorious from a lengthy back-and-forth battle against Ryan Andrada that ended at 7-5, 1-6, 6-0.

Similar to Friday’s competition, the face-off in the No. 1 spot between Kevin Farin and Nevada’s Moez Chargui was a heated battle. Saturday’s match up ended in the Wolf Pack’s favor, with Farin falling 5-7, 6-0, 6-3 on court one.

Oregon will travel to Bloomington, Indiana to face Indiana on Friday, Feb. 6 at 11 a.m. (PST). After the Ducks will head south to take on Louisville on Sunday, Feb. 8 at 7 a.m. (PST).

Follow Sarah Scrivens on Twitter @sarahescrivens

The Oregon women’s tennis team started the morning out with a strong doubles win, but slips in singles play led to the Ducks’ (1-1) loss to the No. 72 Minnesota Golden Gophers (3-2) at the Student Tennis Center on Saturday.

The No. 1 doubles team of Alyssa Tobita and Nia Rose started the morning off with a 6-2 win on court one over Minnesota’s Tereza Brichacova and Mahvish Safdar. Oregon took home the point on court two when Nicole Long and Marlou Kluiving scrapped out a 6-4 victory against Minnesota’s Paula Rincon-Otero and Julia Courter.

Minnesota came back strong in singles play, earning three quick wins to take home the day. Both Rose and Long lost their matches, 6-2 and 6-1 one courts one and two (respectively).

The Golden Gophers clinched the point when Oregon’s Lina Akesson lost to Aria Lambert 6-2, 6-2, sealing Minnesota’s win.

Despite the Gopher’s assured win, the Ducks continued to fight for individual wins. Tobitha gained her second singles win of the season when she managed a 3-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-6) win at No. 3 singles to take the overall match (4-2). Kluiving chalked up another win for the Ducks, winning 6-3, 7-5 to give Oregon just their second singles win for the day.

Head coach Alison Silverio said that the Ducks have been preparing all week for this home match, and was happy with Oregon’s performance at doubles.

“But we all know its about the finish, and Minnesota came out strong in singles,” Silverio said. “And they took it to us today in four of the spots.”

Despite Oregon’s overall loss, coach Silverio was impressed with the tenacity and the drive displayed by the Ducks towards the end of singles play.

“They really fought their way back into the match and they got those victories for our team today,” Silverio said.

Oregon will be at home again next week, playing host to Oklahoma on Sunday, Feb. 8 at noon at the Student Tennis Center.

Follow Sarah Scrivens on Twitter @sarahescrivens

The Oregon men’s tennis team (4-1) suffered their first loss of the season on the road against No. 7 North Carolina on Friday, falling 4-0 to the Tar Heels. Despite the loss at the start of the weekend, the Ducks were able to regroup and shut out No. 36 Alabama 4-0 on Saturday.

North Carolina wasted no time taking the doubles point, finishing both Kevin Farin and Jayson Amos, and Simon Stevens and Cormac Clissold, 6-1 and 6-4 respectively.

The Tar Heels clinched the singles point (4-0) when Amos fell to North Carolina’s Brett Clark, 6-3, 6-2.

Oregon bounced back on Saturday and took down No. 36 Alabama 4-0 in the consolation match of the ITA Kickoff Weekend in Chapel Hill, N.C. The win over the Crimson Tide marks Oregon’s first win over a ranked team this season.

The Ducks gained control right from the start when the No. 2 doubles team of Daan Maasland and Daniel Sardu took down Alabama’s Sean Donohue and Stuart Kenyon, 6-3. The Ducks’ number one duo of Farin and Amos brought home the point with a 7-5 win, and Clissold and Stevens went 5-5 on their match that went unfinished.

Oregon quickly gained the 2-0 overall advantage when Maasland emerged victorious in singles, 6-1, 6-0. Farin bumped the score to 3-0 for the Ducks after finishing his sets 6-2,6-4. Amos brought it home with a 6-3, 7-6, (7-5) win.

Saturday’s win marks the third time this year that the Ducks have shut out their opponents in a victory.

Next up for Oregon: The Ducks return home to host Nevada on Friday, Jan. 30 at 5p.m. and Saturday, Jan. 31 at 3p.m. at the Student Tennis Center.

In 2014, University of Oregon Snow selected 50 members from a 70 person applicant pool. The team wrapped up the season with ambitions to increase the number of applicants in the following year.

This year’s season is now underway — and the program surpassed its initial goal by a wide margin.

Due to an expanded social media campaign and taking home the 2013-14 UO Club Sports Club of the Year Award, UO Snow’s increased campus presence attracted over 90 applications for the 2015 season.

The process of putting together a team capped at 50 members has many challenges, largely due to the limited application process. There is no snow in Eugene to allow for try outs — decisions must be made off of paper applications. Yet despite the limitations, UO Snow coordinators are confident in this year’s selections.

“We have some kids who can rip,” said coordinator Briggs Chapman. “We got some new seniors who have been friends for a while and a very good crop of freshmen. It is going to be a really great season.”

Though UO Snow has filled all open spots for this year, the team is in the process of setting up an open ski bus for those interested in spending a day at Mount Bachelor with the team. It is a new addition to the schedule that its members hope will turn into a tradition after this season.

Through campus events, such as movie screenings and gear swaps, hosted in part by Berg’s Ski and Snowboard Shop and Tactics Board Shop in Eugene, UO Snow has steadily increased its publicity. The team also tries to produce video edits from each trip up to Mount Bachelor in order for people to really see what the program is about.

“They are good to have on social media and YouTube, so people can watch them and see us there,” said UO Snow coordinator Caroline Reardon. “A lot of people watch the videos then find us on Facebook and send us a message. But we also utilize Twitter and our Instagram to interact with people and get our name out there.”

Another new event on this year’s schedule: Participating in USCSA 2015 National Championships, set to be held March 1-7 in Mount Bachelor, Oregon. UO Snow expects a handful of members to compete.

“We’re all very excited about that — especially having it close by on our home mountain,” said Reardon.

UO Snow is only a few practices into the season, and snow conditions at Mount Bachelor have not been ideal for the day-long practices that the team travels over two hours each way for. But it has already started to progress and prepare for its first competition of the year: Vertfest at Mount Bachelor on Feb. 7.

“We have a lot of returners and they help things run smoother because they know the process,” said Reardon. “But in general, we’re all just really stoked on all the new members, and the potential to keep growing on campus.”

For more information on UO Snow, visit its website, Facebook, and Instagram pages.

Follow Sarah Scrivens on Twitter @sarahescrivens

It is Friday at 3 p.m. The temperature reads a cool 40 degrees and the setting sun is already casting a shadow across the intramural fields behind the University of Oregon’s Student Recreation Center.

And just as he is every Monday through Friday, Club Running coach Tom Heinonen is there, taking the time before assigning the day’s workout to acknowledge each runner at practice.

Freshman Joelle Bruck-Frisk jogs up to the group of runners that has formed. Heinonen immediately remarks on the bright colors of her new running shoes. Junior Shane Callen does a calf stretch and Heinonen walks over, asking about his day.

It is this genuine interest in the members of his team that has allowed Heinonen, the team’s volunteer head coach, to expand a program that had just seven runners in 2003 to one with over 40 regulars and 150 on the mailing list today.

“He’s very personable. The second time you come to practice he already knows your name and where you’re from; he says hi to every single person,” said Bruck-Frisk. “It’s very inviting and makes you want to come back.”

Heinonen spent 1975 to 2002 as the head coach of the UO women’s track and field and cross-country teams. During that time he established one of the greatest women’s programs in the country.

While leading the teams, Heinonen brought home two NCAA cross country championships in 1983 and 1987, qualified for the national meet 24 times, won eight Pac-10 Coach of the Year awards and finished with a 124-21 record in dual meets.

Athletes coached by Heinonen have made 17 Olympic appearances and set three American records. Heinonen was also named NCAA Coach of the Year twice, and in 2006 he was inducted into the USTFCCCA Hall of Fame.

Upon his retirement from coaching at the varsity level, Heinonen was approached about taking over the running club by Richie Carpenter, the club’s former coordinator. It was a change in pace that Heinonen gladly accepted.

“Over there, it was all about performance and all the worries that that aspect was concerned with,” said Heinonen, pointing to Hayward field. “Over here, it’s just lighter.”

Running Club attracts runners with interests ranging from simply having social running interest, to those seeking a spot on the UO’s varsity team. Only a handful have made it as walk-on members, and Carlos Trujillo was a unique exception. Trujillo walked on to the UO’s distance program and in his first competitive 10,000 meter race took home the Pac-10 Outdoor title in 2008.

That’s not to say that the club team has not been successful.

In 2007, Heinonen brought home two NIRCA cross-country championships for both men and women – the men took the title again in 2012.

“He’s willing to take it easy with the people who are here recreationally and get serious with the people who want to run hard and push themselves,” said senior club member Andy Girod.

Sixty-nine-year-old Heinonen has cut back his own mileage, and still works at a variety of meets across the state as a stadium announcer and webcaster. But he has now prioritized being a consistent leader for a group of people with a passion for running.

“I show up with a workout, they show up and run, and even an hour after practice, they’re still here,” said Heinonen, looking on as nine of his runners toss around a Frisbee. “It’s all I could ask for.”

Follow Sarah Scrivens on Twitter @sarahescrivens