To understand how well friends of Oregon tennis player Alex Rovello liked him one need only scan his friends' list on Facebook.
Following his death on Saturday, when the four-time state singles champion at Cleveland High School
many of his Facebook friends changed their profile photos to either a photo of Rovello or to one of them with their friend, who was 21.
"Everyone loved him and he was just always so nice," said Lauren James, a Cleveland graduate and friend. "He could light up a room with his smile."
Linn County Sheriff's office confirmed Rovello died in a diving accident at Tamolitch Falls.
According to official accounts,
into Blue Pool, about two miles north of Trail Bridge Campground on Oregon 126.
Police say Rovello's body was too deep in the 37-degree water for friends and bystanders to save him.
The area had no cell phone service. A witness ran more than two miles to call 911.
Alex Rovello.
Rescue teams from Linn County, Lane County, Eugene Mountain Rescue and Corvallis Mountain worked past midnight to recover Rovello's body, which was found 30 to 40 feet below the surface.
Alcohol did not appear to be a factor, according to the Linn County Sheriff's Office. Rovello's body was taken to Fisher Funeral Home in Albany.
Rovello, out of Portland's Cleveland High School, became the first boys player in state history to win four singles state titles.
He finished his high school career with a 50-0 singles record and went 65-2 in the Pacific Northwest. He ranked as high as No.24 in the nation and won two Pacific Cup titles.
Rovello was 21-8 this season for the Ducks playing in the No.3 and No.4 singles positions. He and doubles partner Daan Maasland won 16 matches this season, tied for eighth most in school history. As a sophomore last season, Rovello won 10 matches at No.1 singles. He won 11 at No.1 singles as a freshman.
"The Oregon tennis family is devastated by the loss of Alex," UO tennis coach Nils Schyllander said in a statement. "He was an amazing person and teammate and his spirit will live on forever with all of us who were fortunate enough to have known him. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his parents, Geri and Jim Rovello, and to the entire family."
Rovello appeared in the June14, 2010, issue of Sports Illustrated in "Faces In the Crowd."
"Alex was so much more than a dedicated and exemplary student-athlete at the University of Oregon," UO director of athletics Rob Mullens said in a statement. "He was a son, a friend, a teammate, a leader, whose warm personality brought everyone together and whose contributions to the extended Oregon community will resonate long after today."
A memorial service is being planned by his family for May 18.
-- Aaron Fentress and Nicole Friedman
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Aaron Fentress
Follow @AaronJFentress