MEN’S TENNIS — The sixth-ranked UCSD men’s tennis team had
its long-awaited home opener when it hosted conference rival Cal Poly Pomona at
North Courts on Feb. 13. After a tense start in which the Tritons had to
struggle to earn a 2-1 edge in doubles, UCSD dominated singles play, sweeping
every match to earn an emphatic 8-1 win. Despite the dominant win, coach Eric
Steidlmayer insisted that his nationally ranked team isn’t playing to its full
potential yet.
“We’re not playing at a tournament-type level yet,”
Steidlmayer said. “Granted, our team has been hit hard with some injuries and
it has forced me to mix up the lineup and use different combinations to see
what works. This has forced me to put members of our team in positions they
aren’t accustomed to. Our guys have been competing hard in their matches, and
playing great in practice, but it hasn’t translated on the court yet.”
After the Tritons’ number-one doubles team — seniors Eric
Rubens and Blake Meister — took out the Broncos’ duo of Joshua Lau and Salvador
Romero by the comfortable score of 8-4, both the number-two and -three doubles
matches were nail-biters. In number-two doubles, UCSD sophomores Alex Placek
and Chad Becker battled back from a 7-4 deficit and saved multiple match points
before finally succumbing to Jeffrey Vachirajongkol and Joe Madoo of Cal Poly
Pomona, 8-6. Freshmen Alex Edstrom and Armaun Emami mustered up a crucial win
at the final doubles spot, defeating Jackie Vachirajongkol and Don Evangelisa
by a 9-7 score. The match was a back-and-forth affair that demonstrated the
intensity and fight that Steidlmayer has praised his team for.
“I was proud of the way Edstrom and Emami were able to
compete out there,” he said. “With the score at 1-1, that match was a crucial
one for us to take the lead entering singles play. The match was a tremendous battle throughout
that could have gone either way when the score was tied at seven. I’m impressed with how two freshmen were able
to make the plays that were needed to win the match.”
Energized from the way their freshmen fought, the Tritons
came out firing on all cylinders when singles play started. Even with the injury to Rubens, the team’s
usual number-two or -three singles player, the Tritons had no trouble adjusting
their lineup. Rubens injured his foot,
and has had trouble playing at full strength for the last week. He toughed it out during doubles play, but
elected to sit for singles. Even though
his injury forced each player, except number-one sophomore Bijan Moallemi, to
play a spot higher than normal, UCSD had no trouble with the Broncos, winning
each match in straight sets.
Moallemi got things going at the top spot with a 7-5, 6-2
win over the Broncos’ top player, Joshua Lau.
The sophomore started slow in the first set, but found his groove early
in the second to blow past his opponent. At number two, junior Kazumi Negishi
got past Salvador Romero by a score of 6-3, 7-6 (7). Negishi fought through a difficult second
set, where he had to save six set points, but managed to win in straight sets
thanks to a brilliantly played tiebreaker.
“It was tough to get my game going; the conditions were
pretty tough and I couldn’t find a rhythm out there,” Negishi said. “I’m glad I
was able to win the match in two sets because it would have been difficult to
come back and have to play a third, especially with the conditions.”
Meister completed a perfect day at the courts when he
defeated Jeffrey Vachirajongkol by a 7-6, 6-2 score. Like Moallemi, it took Meister a little while
to find his groove. But he found it after winning the first set tiebreaker, and
the senior was able to impose his game on his opponent. Sophomore Vince Nguyen served well and his
all-around game was simply too much for Madoo to handle, winning 6-2, 6-3. The last two singles matches both ended 6-3,
6-3, with senior Alex Whitmore beating Jackie Vachirajongkol at the five spot
and Edstrom taking out Eric Carlstrom at six.
With the win, UCSD improved to 3-1 overall and notched their
first conference win in their league opener. Up next is a three-day tournament
in
will have the opportunity to face their first nationally ranked team this
season. UCSD will face
15 Abilene Christian on Feb. 16 and finally, Hawaii-Hilo on Feb. 17. The men’s
team will next have a home game when it hosts Concordia on Feb. 20.
