STANFORD, Calif. – Led by impressive performances from Axel Geller, Alexandre Rotsaert and Timothy Sah, No. 10 Stanford cruised past Oregon, 4-0, Sunday during ITA Kick-Off Weekend at Taube Tennis Stadium to earn a spot in the ITA National Team Indoor Championships.
Geller and Rotsaert teamed up to earn a 6-2 win at No. 1 doubles, and each posted straight set victories in singles to guide the Cardinal.
Stanford's win at No. 1 doubles was countered with a 7-5 win for the Ducks at No. 3. The decisive No. 2 doubles match went into a tiebreaker, as Sah and teammate Sameer Kumar battled Oregon's Joshua Charlton and Ty Gentry closely throughout. As the match approached the one-hour mark, the Cardinal duo stormed out to a 3-0 lead in the tiebreaker, holding off Charlton and Gentry for the win. Sah's overhead sealed the 7-4 win in the tiebreaker.
The sophomore continued his momentum, dropping just three games in a straight-set win at No. 6 singles.
Rotsaert registered the third point for the Cardinal, surrendering just one game at No. 2.
In the highly-anticipated showdown between Geller (ranked No. 20) and Oregon's Thomas Laurent (ranked No. 5), the Cardinal sophomore came through with a very impressive performance to clinch the match for Stanford. After a 6-4 opening-set win, Geller won the first four games of the second set and didn't allow a point over his final two games to seal the win.
With the win, the Cardinal earned a spot in the 16-team ITA National Team Indoor Championships in Chicago Feb. 15-18. Stanford reached the semifinals of last year's event.
Up next, Stanford travels to Columbus, Ohio, to face No. 2 Ohio State on Saturday (Feb. 2) at 12 p.m. PT.
No. 10 Stanford 4, Oregon 0
DOUBLES
1) Axel Geller/Alexandre Rotsaert (STAN) d. No. 38 Charles Roberts/Armando Soemarno (ORE) 6-2
2) Sameer Kumar/Timothy Sah (STAN) d. Joshua Charlton/Ty Gentry (ORE) 7-6 (4)
3) Emmanuel Coste/Thomas Laurent (ORE) d. Jack Barber/Michael Genender (STAN) 7-5
Order of Finish: 1,3,2
SINGLES
1) No. 20 Axel Geller (STAN) d. No. 5 Thomas Laurent (ORE) 6-4, 6-2
2) No. 64 Alexandre Rotsaert (STAN) d. No. 99 Emmanuel Coste (ORE) 6-0, 6-1
3) Ty Gentry (ORE) led No. 101 William Genesen (STAN) 6-2, 4-3
4) Ricki Oshima (ORE) led Michael Genender (STAN) 7-6 (3), 1-1
5) No. 29 Sameer Kumar (STAN) led Joshua Charlton (ORE) 7-6 (9)
6) Timothy Sah (STAN) d. Charles Roberts (ORE) 6-1, 6-3
Order of Finish: 2,6,1