IRVINE, Calif. - Going up against its second top-10 opponent of the season, UC Irvine men's tennis was handed its first home loss, falling to seventh-ranked Columbia, 7-0, Friday at Anteater Tennis Stadium.
 
The Lions (12-2) closed out a 3-0 week in Southern California where they also defeated No. 31 UCLA and No. 40 Pepperdine.
 
UCI (8-5) gave Columbia a run for its money in doubles. Andy Nguyen and Hiroki Sakagawa dropped a 6-4 decision to No. 22 Nicolas Kotzen/Max Westphal at No. 2. Brandon Park and Matthew Sah then took Alex Kotzen/Henry Ruger to a tiebreaker where they fell, 7-6 (3), on court three.
 
At the top of the lineup, Rahul Dhokia and Noah Zamora were locked in a tight battle with No. 18 Theo Winegar/Michael Zheng as they were tied 6-6 before their match went unfinished.
 
In singles, the Lions won in straight sets at Nos. 6, 3 and 1 to clinch the match.

Nguyen got out to a strong start at No. 4 where he won the first set, but Westphal came back to take the next two for the 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 victory.
 
Columbia's top-three singles players were all ranked in the latest ITA Top-125.  
 
UC Irvine returns to Anteater Tennis Stadium next Saturday, March 23, when it hosts Gonzaga at 11 a.m.