Saturday, April 24
Irvine, Calif.
11:00 AM
UC Irvine
vs
UC Davis
Photo by: Robert Huskey
Men's Tennis Entertains UC Davis in Regular-Season Finale
April 23, 2021 | Men's Tennis
UC Davis (7-9, 1-3 Big West) at
UC Irvine (9-5, 4-1 Big West)
Date: Saturday, April 24
Time: 11 a.m. (PDT)
Location: Anteater Tennis Stadium (Spectators are not permitted)
Notes (PDF)
IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine men's tennis team closes out the regular season on Saturday, April 24, when it hosts UC Davis at 11 a.m. Spectators are not permitted at Anteater Tennis Stadium.
STORYLINES
• UC Irvine is riding a season-long four-match win streak into Saturday's contest vs. UC Davis.
• With a win against the Aggies, the Anteaters would finish the regular season with a perfect 6-0 home record.
• They would also earn their eighth-straight victory at Anteater Tennis Stadium, dating back to last year.
• Bjorn Hoffmann was featured among the Oracle ITA Singles Top-125 for three-straight weeks, with a high ranking of 60th.
• Hoffmann, who has played every match at the top of the lineup, is 8-5 overall and 2-2 against ranked opponents.
• He has been named the Big West Men's Tennis Athlete of the Week three times this season.
• Mike Mkrtchian owns the squad's longest active singles win streak at six matches. He has not lost since March 12.
• Mkrtchian, who has played at Nos. 4-6, is now 8-3 on the season with his eight victories tied for the team lead.
• Since making his season debut on March 12, Mateusz Smolicki is 5-1 in singles and 5-3 in doubles.
• Ali Amiri has two match-clinching singles wins this season, including the final point in a 4-3 season-opening victory at LMU.
• Bruce Man-Son-Hing owns a 50-27 (.649) career record in dual-match doubles.
• Man-Son-Hing is the 16th 'Eater in program history to reach the 50-win milestone.
• In their Division I history, the Anteaters have made 11 NCAA Tournament appearances.
• They have finished first in the Big West standings 17 times and won three Big West Tournament titles.
• UCI has been named an ITA All-Academic Team (minimum 3.2 team GPA) in each of the last four years.
CONFERENCE STANDINGS
UC Irvine has secured the No. 2 seed regardless of Saturday's results because it holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over No. 3 UC Santa Barbara (4-2). It is the Anteaters' highest tournament seed since 2015 when they were No. 1. Cal Poly clinched the Big West regular-season title and top seed in the upcoming conference tournament as it finished league play with a 6-0 record.
LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine extended its win streak to four with a 4-1 Big West victory over UC San Diego last Saturday at Anteater Tennis Stadium. For the first time since their conference opener at Cal Poly on March 27, the 'Eaters dropped the doubles point. They responded in singles, however, starting at No. 2 where Mateusz Smolicki was first off the court with a 6-2, 6-0 triumph over Zach Ermert. Mark Peneff, playing at the fifth spot, then took the momentum from a 7-5 first-set win to finish off Eric Silberman, 6-0, in the second frame. Mike Mkrtchian continued his hot streak, dispatching Neil Tengbumroong, 6-2, 6-2, at No. 4. Ali Amiri followed with his second match-clinching win of the season, upending William Lan, 6-2, 7-5, at No. 6.
HOME COOKING
UC Irvine is 5-0 at Anteater Tennis Stadium this season. The 'Eaters have not lost at home since Feb. 1, 2020.
IN THE RANKINGS
Bjorn Hoffmann has made an appearance in three of the four regular-season Oracle ITA Men's Tennis Singles Rankings. He was ranked as high as 60th this year. Hoffmann is 8-5 at the top of the lineup, with a 6-3, 7-5 marquee win over No. 60 August Holmgren of San Diego on Feb. 14. He also picked up a three-set victory against No. 77 Alex Stater of Cal Poly on March 27. Hoffmann is in his first season at UCI as a grad transfer from Cal. In his time with the Golden Bears, he was ranked as high as 81st in singles and 22nd in doubles. He is the first Anteater to be featured in the Oracle ITA Singles Top-125 in four years.
SCOUTING THE AGGIES
UC Davis (7-9, 1-3 Big West) wraps up the regular season on the road this week as it travels to UC Riverside on Friday and UC Irvine on Saturday. Andrei Volgin leads the Aggies with seven singles wins at Nos. 2 and 3, including a 3-0 mark against Big West opponents. Volgin and teammate Mitchell Davis are also tops on the squad with a 10-4 doubles record.
BIG WEST TRIFECTA
Bjorn Hoffmann has been named the Big West Athlete of the Week three times this season, earning the recognition on Feb. 10, Feb. 17 and March 31. He is the first Big West player to collect three men's tennis weekly awards in one season since 2018, and the first Anteater to accomplish the feat since Sebastian Heim in 2015.
DOUBLES SPECIALIST
Senior Bruce Man-Son-Hing is a two-time All-Big West doubles selection, earning first-team honors in 2018 and second-team recognition in 2019. In his UCI career, Man-Son-Hing has accumulated a 50-27 dual-match doubles record. His 50 wins rank 16th in school history.
STREAK STAYS ALIVE
Junior Mike Mkrtchian owns the Anteaters' longest active singles win streak at six matches. Six of his eight total victories have come at the fifth and sixth positions, but two weeks ago he played at No. 4 for the first time this season and stepped up to the challenge, delivering the match-clinching point in a 5-2 win over UC Santa Barbara.
STATEMENT MADE
Senior Jeremy Merville (Paris, France) has been a key contributor in the UC Irvine lineup ever since his arrival on campus prior to the 2019-20 campaign. In his first season with the 'Eaters, which was shortened due to the pandemic, the transfer from Nevada picked up a team-leading 13 overall singles wins. He owns an 11-7 career dual-match record at UCI, and was named the Big West Athlete of the Week on Feb. 19, 2020.
SAH POWER
Sophomore Matthew Sah, who has played at Nos. 3-5 in the lineup, is tied for third on the team with five singles wins. Sah set the tone for his 2021 season with an impressive performance back in July, when he won the ITA Summer Circuit event at Barnes Tennis Center in San Diego (July 11-13, 2020). Sah went 5-0 over the course of three days.
ALL-BIG WEST RETURNER
Senior Mateusz Smolicki, who played one season at USC, is in his third year with the Anteaters. As a sophomore in 2019, the Warsaw, Poland, native earned All-Big West honorable mention recognition in both singles and doubles. Smolicki made his 2021 season debut in doubles at Pepperdine on March 12. Since his return to the court, Smolicki is 5-1 in singles and 5-3 in doubles.
ANTEATER ROOTS
Bjorn Hoffmann has returned to his Orange County roots for his final season of eligibility. A Newport Beach native, Hoffmann has strong ties to UC Irvine with his parents, Carsten Hoffmann and Biljana Longman, and his uncle, Zoran Korac, all being Anteater tennis alums. Both his father and mother still rank among UCI's all-time win leaders. Hoffmann is looking to finish out a stellar collegiate career himself, as he was a three-time ITA Scholar-Athlete as a member of the Cal men's tennis team. He finished his Golden Bear career with a 67-34 singles and 39-28 doubles record.
UP NEXT
The Big West Championships are set for next weekend at the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, April 30-May 2.
UC Irvine (9-5, 4-1 Big West)
Date: Saturday, April 24
Time: 11 a.m. (PDT)
Location: Anteater Tennis Stadium (Spectators are not permitted)
Notes (PDF)
IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine men's tennis team closes out the regular season on Saturday, April 24, when it hosts UC Davis at 11 a.m. Spectators are not permitted at Anteater Tennis Stadium.
STORYLINES
• UC Irvine is riding a season-long four-match win streak into Saturday's contest vs. UC Davis.
• With a win against the Aggies, the Anteaters would finish the regular season with a perfect 6-0 home record.
• They would also earn their eighth-straight victory at Anteater Tennis Stadium, dating back to last year.
• Bjorn Hoffmann was featured among the Oracle ITA Singles Top-125 for three-straight weeks, with a high ranking of 60th.
• Hoffmann, who has played every match at the top of the lineup, is 8-5 overall and 2-2 against ranked opponents.
• He has been named the Big West Men's Tennis Athlete of the Week three times this season.
• Mike Mkrtchian owns the squad's longest active singles win streak at six matches. He has not lost since March 12.
• Mkrtchian, who has played at Nos. 4-6, is now 8-3 on the season with his eight victories tied for the team lead.
• Since making his season debut on March 12, Mateusz Smolicki is 5-1 in singles and 5-3 in doubles.
• Ali Amiri has two match-clinching singles wins this season, including the final point in a 4-3 season-opening victory at LMU.
• Bruce Man-Son-Hing owns a 50-27 (.649) career record in dual-match doubles.
• Man-Son-Hing is the 16th 'Eater in program history to reach the 50-win milestone.
• In their Division I history, the Anteaters have made 11 NCAA Tournament appearances.
• They have finished first in the Big West standings 17 times and won three Big West Tournament titles.
• UCI has been named an ITA All-Academic Team (minimum 3.2 team GPA) in each of the last four years.
CONFERENCE STANDINGS
UC Irvine has secured the No. 2 seed regardless of Saturday's results because it holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over No. 3 UC Santa Barbara (4-2). It is the Anteaters' highest tournament seed since 2015 when they were No. 1. Cal Poly clinched the Big West regular-season title and top seed in the upcoming conference tournament as it finished league play with a 6-0 record.
LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine extended its win streak to four with a 4-1 Big West victory over UC San Diego last Saturday at Anteater Tennis Stadium. For the first time since their conference opener at Cal Poly on March 27, the 'Eaters dropped the doubles point. They responded in singles, however, starting at No. 2 where Mateusz Smolicki was first off the court with a 6-2, 6-0 triumph over Zach Ermert. Mark Peneff, playing at the fifth spot, then took the momentum from a 7-5 first-set win to finish off Eric Silberman, 6-0, in the second frame. Mike Mkrtchian continued his hot streak, dispatching Neil Tengbumroong, 6-2, 6-2, at No. 4. Ali Amiri followed with his second match-clinching win of the season, upending William Lan, 6-2, 7-5, at No. 6.
HOME COOKING
UC Irvine is 5-0 at Anteater Tennis Stadium this season. The 'Eaters have not lost at home since Feb. 1, 2020.
IN THE RANKINGS
Bjorn Hoffmann has made an appearance in three of the four regular-season Oracle ITA Men's Tennis Singles Rankings. He was ranked as high as 60th this year. Hoffmann is 8-5 at the top of the lineup, with a 6-3, 7-5 marquee win over No. 60 August Holmgren of San Diego on Feb. 14. He also picked up a three-set victory against No. 77 Alex Stater of Cal Poly on March 27. Hoffmann is in his first season at UCI as a grad transfer from Cal. In his time with the Golden Bears, he was ranked as high as 81st in singles and 22nd in doubles. He is the first Anteater to be featured in the Oracle ITA Singles Top-125 in four years.
SCOUTING THE AGGIES
UC Davis (7-9, 1-3 Big West) wraps up the regular season on the road this week as it travels to UC Riverside on Friday and UC Irvine on Saturday. Andrei Volgin leads the Aggies with seven singles wins at Nos. 2 and 3, including a 3-0 mark against Big West opponents. Volgin and teammate Mitchell Davis are also tops on the squad with a 10-4 doubles record.
BIG WEST TRIFECTA
Bjorn Hoffmann has been named the Big West Athlete of the Week three times this season, earning the recognition on Feb. 10, Feb. 17 and March 31. He is the first Big West player to collect three men's tennis weekly awards in one season since 2018, and the first Anteater to accomplish the feat since Sebastian Heim in 2015.
DOUBLES SPECIALIST
Senior Bruce Man-Son-Hing is a two-time All-Big West doubles selection, earning first-team honors in 2018 and second-team recognition in 2019. In his UCI career, Man-Son-Hing has accumulated a 50-27 dual-match doubles record. His 50 wins rank 16th in school history.
STREAK STAYS ALIVE
Junior Mike Mkrtchian owns the Anteaters' longest active singles win streak at six matches. Six of his eight total victories have come at the fifth and sixth positions, but two weeks ago he played at No. 4 for the first time this season and stepped up to the challenge, delivering the match-clinching point in a 5-2 win over UC Santa Barbara.
STATEMENT MADE
Senior Jeremy Merville (Paris, France) has been a key contributor in the UC Irvine lineup ever since his arrival on campus prior to the 2019-20 campaign. In his first season with the 'Eaters, which was shortened due to the pandemic, the transfer from Nevada picked up a team-leading 13 overall singles wins. He owns an 11-7 career dual-match record at UCI, and was named the Big West Athlete of the Week on Feb. 19, 2020.
SAH POWER
Sophomore Matthew Sah, who has played at Nos. 3-5 in the lineup, is tied for third on the team with five singles wins. Sah set the tone for his 2021 season with an impressive performance back in July, when he won the ITA Summer Circuit event at Barnes Tennis Center in San Diego (July 11-13, 2020). Sah went 5-0 over the course of three days.
ALL-BIG WEST RETURNER
Senior Mateusz Smolicki, who played one season at USC, is in his third year with the Anteaters. As a sophomore in 2019, the Warsaw, Poland, native earned All-Big West honorable mention recognition in both singles and doubles. Smolicki made his 2021 season debut in doubles at Pepperdine on March 12. Since his return to the court, Smolicki is 5-1 in singles and 5-3 in doubles.
ANTEATER ROOTS
Bjorn Hoffmann has returned to his Orange County roots for his final season of eligibility. A Newport Beach native, Hoffmann has strong ties to UC Irvine with his parents, Carsten Hoffmann and Biljana Longman, and his uncle, Zoran Korac, all being Anteater tennis alums. Both his father and mother still rank among UCI's all-time win leaders. Hoffmann is looking to finish out a stellar collegiate career himself, as he was a three-time ITA Scholar-Athlete as a member of the Cal men's tennis team. He finished his Golden Bear career with a 67-34 singles and 39-28 doubles record.
UP NEXT
The Big West Championships are set for next weekend at the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, April 30-May 2.
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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