March 15, 1998

TEMPE, Ariz. -- The Arizona State men's tennis team (5-5, 1-4 Pac-10) notched its first Pac-10 Conference win by defeating the sixth-ranked USC Trojans (11-3, 4-2 Pac-10), 4-3 in a two-day dual at the Whiteman Tennis Center. Due to rain showers that halted the dual on Saturday, play resumed Sunday with the dual tied at three matches apiece with the No. 1 singles remaining.

The conclusive match began Sunday with ASU's Gustavo Marcaccio leading USC's George Bastl 5-4, 15-love in the third with Bastl serving. Marcaccio proceeded to reel off three straight point to break Bastl and win the match as well as the dual for ASU, 6-4, 1-6, 6-4. Marcaccio, ranked 66th, earned his second win of the season over Bastl, who is ranked 24th in the country.

In addition to Marcaccio's match, the Sun Devils rallied to claim victories on courts No. 2, 3 and 5 after loosing the doubles point. At the No. 2 slot, ASU's Ed Carter earned an early win over USC's Patrick Gottesleben, 6-2, 6-2 to even the dual at one apiece. USC regained the lead at the No. 4 position as Roman Kukal defeated Peter Dani, 6-3, 6-2. The Trojans then took a 3-1 lead when Akram Zaman won at No. 6 singles over Miles Rogers, 7-5, 7-5. ASU then charged back and evened the dual when Alex Osterrieth defeated USC's Kyle Spencer at the No. 3 position, 7-5, 6-4 and Tim Hammond outlasted Fernando Samayoa in heated battle, 6-2, 2-6, 7-6 (5).

ASU's win over the USC Trojans marked only the fifth time in school history. Additionally, it was the Sun Devils first win over USC since the 1995 season when ASU advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

Arizona State will next travel to UC Santa Barbara for a dual on Saturday, March 21 at 1:30 p.m.