IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine men's tennis team has the talent, experience and chemistry to make some noise in the Big West Conference this season.
 
The Anteaters saw a lot of individual success in their three preseason tournaments and will be looking to translate that into team success starting with their dual match opener against San Diego State on Feb. 1.
 
During the fall, UCI went 44-36 in singles and 17-15 in doubles. Junior Mateusz Smolicki led the way, winning the consolation singles championship at both the ITA Southwest Regionals and the Aztec Fall Invitational.  
 
"We are very excited to build off of our successful fall preseason," said UCI head coach Mike Saunders. "We are a young, hungry, passionate and united group this year. We have another challenging schedule that will enable us to grow and become fierce competitors come Big West Conference time. Given how inspired and motivated our players are, this season will no doubt be a successful, compelling ride."
 
After kicking off the campaign against SDSU at Anteater Tennis Stadium, UC Irvine will hit the road over the next four weekends, culminating with a showdown at No. 11 UCLA on Sunday, Feb. 23.
 
The 'Eaters return home for the entire month of March before starting Big West play against Cal Poly on Friday, April 3. The conference tournament returns to Indian Wells Tennis Garden, April 23-26.
 
 
MEET THE TEAM
> UC Irvine returns six letterwinners from a 2019 squad that went 15-8, and made its fifth-straight appearance in the semifinals of the Big West Tournament.
 
> Junior Mateusz Smolicki was a 2019 All-Big West honorable mention selection in both singles and doubles. He continued his strong play this fall as he won the ITA Southwest Regionals consolation championship, going 5-1 over the four-day tournament. The Warsaw, Poland, native also came out on top in his flight's back draw at the Aztec Fall Invitational.
 
> Sophomore Mike Mkrtchian had an impressive fall season as he finished with a team-best 8-2 singles record. Mkrtchian picked up three wins against Pac-12 foes, and also won the consolation bracket in the State Flight at the Aztec Fall Invitational.
 
> Senior Daniel Gealer was tops on the squad in 2018-19 with a 20-9 overall singles ledger. He earned 14 of his wins in dual matches, playing at Nos. 3-6.
 
> Senior Bruce Man-Son-Hing has seen most of his playing time in doubles over the last couple seasons, earning All-Big West honors in 2018 and 2019. He went 1-1 in singles and 2-5 in doubles during the fall.
 
> Sophomore Aaron Bailey, who was 5-2 in tournament play, won 13 overall singles matches as a true freshman last year. He went 8-8 in dual matches where he played primarily at No. 5 and No. 6.
 
> Junior Antoine Barthe did not play during the dual-match season last year. This fall, he went 3-2 in doubles with two of his wins coming alongside Mike Mkrtchian.
 
> Junior Jeremy Merville is in his first year at UC Irvine after transferring from Nevada. Merville made a smooth transition during the fall as he closed out tournament action with four-straight wins for a 6-3 singles record. As a freshman with the Wolf Pack in 2017-18, Merville made his way into the school's single-season all-time top-10 with 22 singles and 14 doubles victories.
 
> Sophomore Mark Peneff, a transfer from Glendale Community College, won four singles matches and three doubles matches in his first NCAA Division I action this fall. At GCC, Peneff was named the Western State Conference Player of the Year after winning the league's singles championship and claiming runner-up honors in doubles.
 
> Freshmen Matthew Sah and Ali Amiri also made their collegiate debuts in the fall. In doubles, Amiri teamed up with Aaron Bailey for a team-best 5-2 record. Sah had success alongside Jeremy Merville as the duo combined to go 3-1 at the ITA Southwest Regionals and LMU Invitational. Sah also advanced to the State Flight singles semifinal at the Aztec Invitational.