LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The UC Irvine men's tennis team struggled to find any momentum against fourth-ranked UCLA, dropping a 7-0 decision Tuesday afternoon at Los Angeles Tennis Center.
The loss snaps a seven game win streak for the Anteaters that dated back to March 7. UCI drops to 10-8 on the season while the Bruins improve to 17-2.
"I think we could have played smarter in the beginning," said head coach
Mike Saunders. "The better teams can make you feel like you need to do more than needed. The positive takeaway today is that all of our second sets in the singles were closer than the first. That's a sign we are competing better, staying resilient, problem solving, making adjustments and raising our level as the matches progress. This match will serve us well moving forward."
UCLA took the doubles point with wins at No. 1 and 3. On court two,
Bruce Man-Son-Hing and
Vatsal Bajpai were up, 5-4, against the 33
rd ranked duo of Keegan Smith and Austin Rapp, before the match was cut short.
The Bruins continued to roll in singles as Rapp defeated Bajpai at No. 5 and No. 45 Keegan Smith earned a 6-1, 6-3 win over
Sasha Krasnov at No. 2. UCLA clinched the match with a win at the No. 4 position.
At the top spot,
Luis Lopez battled with the Bruins' Evan Zhu but ultimately fell, 6-2, 7-5.
Luca Marquard dropped a 6-3, 7-5 decision to No. 66 Logan Staggs on court three.
UCI returns home to host Eastern Washington Thursday, March 29 at 11 a.m.
Singles
1. Evan Zhu (UCLA) def.
Luis Lopez (UCI) 6-2, 7-5
2. #45 Keegan Smith (UCLA) def.
Sasha Krasnov (UCI) 6-1, 6-3
3. #66 Logan Staggs (UCLA) def.
Luca Marquard (UCI) 6-3, 7-5
4. Connor Hance (UCLA) def.
Daniel Gealer (UCI) 6-2, 6-2
5. Austin Rapp (UCLA) def.
Vatsal Bajpai (UCI) 6-1, 6-2
6. Ben Goldberg (UCLA) def.
Mason Hansen (UCI) 6-2, 6-4
Doubles
1. Martin Redlicki/Evan Zhu (UCLA) def.
Mason Hansen/
Luca Marquard (UCI) 6-3
2. #33 Keegan Smith/Austin Rapp (UCLA) vs.
Vatsal Bajpai/
Bruce Man-Son-Hing (UCI) 4-5, unfinished
3. Bryce Pereira/Ben Goldberg (UCLA) def.
Luis Lopez/
Daniel Gealer (UCI) 6-3