IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine men's tennis team took four-time defending Big West champion UC Santa Barbara down to the wire before ultimately dropping a 4-2 decision Saturday afternoon at Anteater Tennis Stadium.
 
The 'Eaters and Gauchos were locked in a 2-2 tie before the visitors won a couple tiebreakers on courts one and four to emerge with the tightly-contested victory.
 
UCI is now 13-6 overall and 2-2 in Big West action, but is still in sole possession of third in the conference standings. UCSB improves to 11-6, 2-0 Big West.
 
INSIDE THE MATCH
> UC Santa Barbara claimed the doubles point, but the Anteaters responded in singles.
> Mateusz Smolicki quickly evened the playing field as he dispatched No. 93 Victor Krustev, 6-4, 6-1, at No. 3.
> The Gauchos went back on top with Anders Holm earning a straight-set victory over Aaron Bailey at the sixth spot.
> Daniel Gealer then made it 2-2 with an impressive 6-4, 6-4 triumph over Joseph Rotheram on court five.
> The remaining singles matches were all extremely close and could have gone either way.
> Sasha Krasnov battled 14th-ranked Nicolas Moreno de Alboran at No. 1 but came up just short, 7-5, 7-6 (4).
> Mason Hansen also fell in a hard-fought match with Hironori Koyanagi, 7-6 (1), 7-6 (4).
> Luis Lopez went to a third set with No. 56 Joseph Guillin at the second position when UCSB clinched the match.
> In doubles, Lopez and Bruce Man-Son-Hing were handed only their second loss of the year and first at the top of the lineup.
> The duo, which is 12-2 in dual matches, fell to Holm/Moreno de Alboran, 6-1.
> The Gauchos then secured the early point with Guillin/Krustev defeating Vatsal Bajpai and Smolicki, 6-2, at No. 2.
> Hansen and Krasnov, who entered the afternoon with three wins in as many matches together, were up 5-2 before UCSB clinched the point.
 
UP NEXT
> UC Irvine concludes the regular season with two matches next weekend.
> The Anteaters start with a 10 a.m. non-conference showdown against Northern Arizona on Friday, April 19.
> They return to the courts on Saturday, April 20, to take on Big West foe UC Davis at 11 a.m.


UC Santa Barbara 4, UC Irvine 2
Singles
1. #14 Nicolas Moreno de Alboran (UCSB) def. Sasha Krasnov (UCI), 7-5, 7-6 (4)
2. Luis Lopez (UCI) vs. #56 Joseph Guillin (UCSB), 7-6 (5), 4-6, 0-2 unfinished
3. Mateusz Smolicki (UCI) def. #93 Victor Krustev (UCSB), 6-4, 6-1
4. Hironori Koyanagi (UCSB) def. Mason Hansen (UCI), 7-6 (1), 7-6 (4)
5. Daniel Gealer (UCI) def. Joseph Rotheram (UCSB), 6-4, 6-4
6. Anders Holm (UCSB) def. Aaron Bailey (UCI), 6-3, 6-2

Order of finish: 3, 6, 5, 1, 4

Doubles
1. Holm/Moreno de Alboran (UCSB) def. Lopez/Bruce Man-Son-Hing (UCI), 6-1
2. Guillin/Krustev (UCSB) def. Vatsal Bajpai/Smolicki (UCI), 6-2
3. Hansen/Krasnov (UCI) vs. Rotheram/Alex Soto (UCSB), 5-2 unfinished

Order of finish: 1, 2