Results

LOS ANGELES - The 68th-ranked UC Irvine men's tennis team fell to No. 17 San Diego, 4-0, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Friday at USC's Marks Stadium.
 
The Anteaters were making their 12th NCAA appearance after winning the Big West Championship last weekend. They close out an extraordinary season with a 17-7 record, which marks their most wins since 2016 and best win percentage since 1999.
 
"Congratulations to Coach Keckley and his team," said head coach Mike Saunders. "USD is extremely well-coached and they are one of the classiest programs in college tennis. I'm proud of our guys; they fought for every point with belief and represented the program, athletic department and university with pride and integrity. Our guys can certainly hold their heads high. We gained some valuable experience today, and this taste of the NCAAs will inspire this team going forward. We can beat teams at this level but it will take work, sacrifice and commitment to do so.
 
"Thank you to our fellow UCI student-athletes, coaches and staff, as well as all the fans and alumni for their support; it made our journey unforgettable."
 
The Toreros (23-3) took the early advantage after winning the doubles point. On court two, Mike Mkrtchian and Noah Zamora fell to Will Davies/Sacchitt Sharrma, 6-2. The 'Eater duo was playing together for only the second time, and first since the fall tournament season.
 
At No. 3, Ali Amiri and Lawee Sherif went back-and-forth with David Norfeldt/Marvin Schaber before USD rallied to win four of the last five games for the 6-3 victory.
 
Riccardo Roberto and Matthew Sah were up 4-3 against No. 22 August Holmgren/Gui Osorio on center court when their match was abandoned.
 
In singles, San Diego picked up three hard-fought straight-set wins for the 4-0 victory. Mike Mkrtchian, who was playing at No. 3 for the first time this year, saw his five-match win streak snapped as he dropped a 6-1, 6-2 decision to Sacchitt Sharrma.
 
David Norfeldt then gave USD a 3-0 lead by defeating Lawee Sherif, 6-1, 6-3, at No. 4.
 
On court six, Ali Amiri, who was making his first singles appearance since April 16, was locked in a tight battle with Marvin Schaber. The two were tied at 4-4 in the opening set when Schaber finished strong for the 6-4 win. The Torero kept the momentum into the second frame, going up 5-2, before Amiri won the next two games. Amiri was unable to complete the comeback, however, falling 6-4, 6-4.
 
At the top of the lineup, Riccardo Roberto was trailing 6-3, 5-2 against August Holmgren, the NCAA's sixth-ranked singles player, while Big West Freshman of the Year Noah Zamora was in a first-set tiebreaker against No. 111 Gui Osorio when San Diego clinched.
 
UC Irvine was without the services of Emmanuel Coste due to a family emergency. Coste is a first-team All-Big West selection, ranked 87th in the ITA Singles Top-125 and has been a staple at the top of the Anteaters' singles and doubles lineup this season.
 
NOTES
• UC Irvine was making its 12th NCAA Tournament appearance, and first since 2011.
• UCI had earned The Big West's automatic NCAA bid after defeating the top two seeds to claim the conference tournament title.
• Riccardo Roberto closed out the campaign by winning his last 10 decisions.
• Roberto did not have a singles loss after the Anteaters' Feb. 13 match at UCLA.
• Big West co-Freshman of the Year Noah Zamora finished with a team-best 13-2 dual-match singles record.