Strong performances against division 1 opponents confirm men’s tennis excellent start of the season, as they go 2-2 in a busy week.
Playing in one of this year’s busiest weeks, the No. 17 UCSD men’s tennis team competed in a slew of matches for the 126th Annual Pacific Coast Doubles. Lasting from last Thursday through this Tuesday, the team took a pair of wins against Villanova University and Georgetown, followed by a pair of losses to UC Irvine and the University of West Florida. The Tritons now hold an 8–6 record on the season.
The Pacific Coast Doubles ran from Thursday through Sunday at the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club, and it was seniors Axel Bouillin and Rajeev Herekar (9–2 as a duo) who made it the furthest for the Tritons, reaching the quarterfinals before defeat.
Their tournament began with an 8–4 win over Georgetown pair senior Alex Tropiano and freshman Marco Lam. They then became the only Triton pair to progress past the round of 64 thanks to a 8–4 victory over second-seeded Oklahoma State’s sophomore Arjun Kadhe and senior Jakob Sude. Wins over San Diego State and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps pushed them past through the round of 16 and into the quarterfinals.
However, in their quarterfinal match up against UC Davis, the pair took the first set 6–2, but dropped the second and lost the final set in a tiebreaker.
The rest of the UCSD men’s tennis team began the week well elsewhere as it nearly completed a shutout of Division-I opponent Villanova at Northview Courts. The Tritons won all their doubles matches and triumphed in five of the six singles matches to take home an 8–1 victory.
Junior Horea Porutui grabbed the first victory in the singles with a comfortable 6–1, 6–1 win over Wildcat sophomore Bradley Noyes in the number two spot. Bouillin took a 6–1, 6–3 victory over senior Mark Miller in the number one singles spot and paired up with Herekar to take a 8–5 victory in the number one doubles spot. A number-six singles spot victory for Triton sophomore Alexandre Mialue over Wildcat senior Michael Rosengren (6–3, 6–1) rounded off an impressive day for the Tritons.
The Tritons, without Bouillin and Herekar, also started Sunday off well with a 4–3 home win over another Division-I foe: Georgetown. The Tritons managed to take three out of six singles matches, including wins from freshman Eric Tseng and Porutui in the number one and number two slots, respectively. UCSD also managed to take two of the three doubles matches to best Georgetown.
“We’ve been preparing all week for this,” UCSD head coach Timmer Willing said, following the back-to-back Division-I victories. “Anything can happen because they’re a short version and when we won [the doubles] they really gave us a little lift.”
The Tritons then suffered a tough 5–2 defeat against Division-I opponent UC Irvine at Newport Beach Club. Despite their recent momentum, the Tritons lost all doubles matches and picked up just two singles wins from six matches. Porutui (6–4, 7–5) in the number one slot and senior Kona Luu (6–4, 7–6) in the sixth slot were the only two Tritons who brought points to the UCSD scorecard.
On Tuesday, the blue and gold wrapped up the week with a tough 9–0 loss against top-ranked Division-II squad West Florida, who is now on an incredible 37-game winning streak.
Bouillin and Herekar were narrowly defeated 9–8 in the No. 1 doubles spot. UCSD also dropped No. 2 doubles 8–0 and No. 3 doubles 8–4. The singles had little more success, though No. 3 player Porutiu took a set to his opponent. Bouillon and Tseng, in the first and second singles’ spot, were dropped in straight sets by nationally ranked opponents.
After a busy week, the Tritons look to build on their successes as they host No. 2 Hawaii Pacific University on Saturday, March 14, the final home game of the season. The Tritons had lost 7–2 earlier in the season at Hawaii Pacific.
