By Ben Zimmerman

MCMINNVILLE, Ore. -- Quickest. Match. Ever.

That, verbatim, was Whitman head coach Jeff Northam's initial assessment of his Missionaries' 9-0 sweep of Linfield in Northwest Conference men's tennis here Friday. The host Wildcats had just five players in uniform, and it took full-strength Whitman a mere 45 minutes to secure a 5-0 lead and clinch the match.

"I guess we all kind of took it easy," said Northam, whose squad improved to 2-1 overall and opened its conference assault a pristine 1-0. "It was just kind of anticlimactic winning that quickly. Some other guys got a chance to play today."

Linfield did not field a sixth singles or third doubles team, ceding a 2-0 lead before play ensued. The lone competitive match came at first doubles, where Whitman's Andy Riggs and Jake Hoeger trailed a break, 5-4, before rallying for an 8-5 win.

Riggs apparently had some gas left in the tank, ripping to a 6-0, 6-0 win at first singles.

"He did a great job," Northam said. "For him to step into the one-spot and play well was exciting. Great leadership on his part."

James Rivers and Parker Silverman cruised to an 8-1 victory at second doubles for Whitman, and Colton Malesovas and Steven Roston won by default at third doubles.

Riggs' dominant performance was a theme of singles play overall for the Missionaries, who dropped just 11 games in five contested matches. Petar Jivkov posted a 6-2, 6-2 win at second singles, Jake Hoeger won 6-0, 6-4 at third singles, James Rivers scored a 6-3, 6-0 win at fourth singles, and Jacob Christensen picked up the first win of his collegiate career in style, sweeping to a 6-0, 6-0 victory at fifth singles.

"It's always exciting for a freshman to get his first win," said Hein, "especially in such decisive fashion."

Silverman won by default at sixth singles.

Whitman visits Willamette Saturday.

Match Results