Season Notes (PDF)

2022-23 SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
• UC Irvine went 5-1 in conference play to clinch a share of its first Big West regular-season title since 2015.
• The Anteaters finished in a three-way tie for first with UC Santa Barbara and UC Davis.
• As the No. 2 seed, the 'Eaters made their eighth consecutive appearance in the Big West semifinals.
• UCI defeated the third-seeded Aggies to advance to the championship match for the second year in a row.
• The Anteaters followed a tough 1-6 start to the 2023 dual match campaign with 10-straight wins.
• Their 4-0 victory against UC Davis on April 14 was eighth-year head coach Mike Saunders' 100th career dual-match win.
• Since March 5, the 'Eaters were dominant in singles, combining for a 57-12 (.826) record.
• Not including the canceled 2020 season, UC Irvine has reached 10+ wins every year since 2017-18.
• UCI also recorded its sixth consecutive winning season.
• In 2023, seven of the Anteaters' eight losses were to teams ranked in the final ITA Top 75.
• Four Anteaters were named to the All-Big West Team.
• Enrique Luque Rico was a first-team selection in singles after going 10-6 in dual matches and 8-3 at No. 1.
• One of his victories came against a ranked opponent as he defeated No. 83 Noah Berry of Cal Poly in straight sets.
• Noah Zamora, who was a perfect 6-0 against Big West foes, also earned first-team distinction.
• Zamora went unbeaten in his last 15 outings where he was 11-0 with four matches that went unfinished.
• Brandon Park (Second Team) and Rithvik Krishna (Honorable Mention) rounded out UCI's honorees.
• Park went 10-5 in dual-match singles and was 5-1 in Big West play, while Krishna finished with an 11-5 record in duals.
• Park/Zamora added an All-Big West first-team nod in doubles as the pair owned a team-leading 12 dual-match victories.
• Thomas Smart, who saw action at Nos. 4-6, led the squad with 14 victories.
• In their Division I history, the Anteaters have made 12 NCAA Tournament appearances.
• They have placed first in the Big West standings 18 times and won 4 conference tournament titles (2022, 2010-11, 2005).
• UC Irvine has been named an ITA All-Academic Team (minimum 3.2 team GPA) in each of the last six years.
 
BIG WEST CHAMPIONSHIPS RECAP
Second-seeded UC Irvine opened the 2023 Big West Championships in the semifinals where it took down No. 3 seed UC Davis, 4-1. In doubles, Rithvik Krishna and Matthew Sah cruised to a 6-2 victory over Lucas Bollinger and Coleton Hootman at No. 3. The Anteaters went the distance on the remaining two courts. At No. 1, Brandon Park and Noah Zamora were locked in a seesaw battle with Mitchell Davis/Andrei Volgin. After UCI pulled ahead, 5-4, the Aggies fought back for a 6-5 advantage. Park/Zamora then came up clutch in a must-win game to force the tiebreaker which they dominated for the 7-6 (2) point-clinching victory. On court two, Lawee Sherif and Thomas Smart also battled back to tie it up at 6-6 when their match was abandoned. Zamora continued to roll in singles as he dispatched Constantinos Djakouris 6-1, 6-4 at No. 2. UCD got on the board at No. 6, but the 'Eaters responded with wins at one and five to clinch the match. Enrique Luque Rico upended Volgin 1-6, 6-1, 6-2 at the top of the lineup before Smart delivered a 6-1, 7-5 victory at the fifth spot to send UC Irvine back to the championship for a rematch with top-seeded UC Santa Barbara.
 
The Anteaters were looking to win back-to-back Big West tournament titles after defeating UCSB, 4-1, in last year's final, but the 39th-ranked Gauchos had other plans. After a one-hour weather delay, UC Santa Barbara took the early lead, coming out on top at Nos. 2 and 3 to secure the doubles point. UCSB carried the momentum into singles play as it clinched the championship with victories on courts one, six and five. At the fourth position, Krishna took his opening set in a tiebreaker, 7-6 (6). Zamora (No. 2) and Park (No. 3) were also up in the second set after dropping the first on their respective courts when the match was decided.
 
SINGLES STREAKS
Sophomore Noah Zamora went unbeaten in his last 15 outings where he was 11-0 with four matches that went unfinished. Ali Amiri, Enrique Luque Rico, Brandon Park and Rithvik Krishna all had at least a six-match win streak during the regular season.
 
FROM THE TOP
Graduate transfer Enrique Luque Rico (10-6) went 8-3 at the top of the singles lineup. The first-team All-Big West selection earned his first ranked win of the season at Cal Poly where he took down No. 83 Noah Berry 6-4, 6-1 to clinch the team victory. It was his third ranked opponent of the dual-match season as he fell in three sets to No. 68 Andre Ilagan of Hawai'i on April 1 to snap a seven-match win streak, while he was up a set on No. 124 Tim Zeitvogel of Pepperdine when their match was abandoned. Earlier in the year, Luque Rico also had a Pac-12 win, upending UCLA's Giacomo Revelli 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 at No. 2 on Feb. 11.
 
WIN NO. 20
Sophomore Noah Zamora earned his 20th career dual-match singles win at Hawai'i on April 1. In two seasons at UCI, Zamora, who is a two-time All-Big West singles selection and the 2022 Big West Freshman of the Year, has compiled a 24-8 dual-match record. The San Diego native settled in nicely at the second and third positions this season where he was 10-1. In the fall, Zamora led the 'Eaters with seven victories, advanced to the pre-qualifying Round of 64 at the ITA All-American Championships and made it to the Round of 32 at the ITA Southwest Regional.
 
THE COMEBACK
Thomas Smart (14-6), who missed most of last year with an injury, was the first 'Eater to reach double digits in the dual-match singles win column in 2023 with his 10th victory coming at Hawai'i. He played at Nos. 4-6 and went 7-3 over his last 10 outings. Five of his six losses were against teams in the final ITA Top-75 Rankings.
 
INSTANT CHEMISTRY
Junior Brandon Park and sophomore Noah Zamora found instant chemistry on the court. The duo made their debut as a tandem on Feb. 18 and proceeded to win six-straight at the top of the lineup. They clinched the doubles point against Nevada and Army, while also earning an impressive 6-4 victory at Pepperdine. Park/Zamora (12-4) garnered first-team All-Big West honors in doubles.
 
ADDING DEPTH
Sophomore Rithvik Krishna was a key contributor during the Anteaters' 2022 Big West championship run. He was in the singles lineup at No. 6 for each of the team's last five matches and went 5-1 on the season with two of his victories coming in the conference tournament. Krishna continued to build on a strong start to his collegiate career with an 11-5 mark while playing primarily at No. 4 this year. Including the fall campaign, Krishna had an impressive 17-7 overall record as a sophomore.
 
FOURTH-YEAR LEADERS
Matthew Sah and Ali Amiri have both been with the UC Irvine men's tennis program since fall 2019. The two have come a long way from seeing their freshman dual-match season canceled in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to becoming Big West champions in 2022. During their collegiate careers, the 'Eaters own a 45-24 dual-match record. Sah is the Anteaters' active leader in doubles wins at 31.