The UCSD men’s tennis team’s initial struggles appear to be over.
Senior Eric Oijala and his doubles partner, sophomore Blake Meister, were one of three pairs that were victorious over Fresno Pacific in a 6-3 win, the Tritons’ fifth in a row.
The No. 14 Tritons have bounced back from a challenging schedule that led to an 0-6 start, posting their fifth-straight win overall with a victory over the Fresno Pacific University Sunbirds on March 9.
The Tritons, now 5-6, started the day off with a 3-0 lead over the Fresno Pacific, showcasing nearly perfect doubles play. Standout performances came from the No. 1 doubles team of sophomore Blake Meister and senior Erik Oijala, as they defeated opponents Robert Bianco and Marco Foelz by a score of 8-5.
UCSD’s No. 2 duo of seniors Brent Molden and Steven Oechal posted a huge 8-1 win over Anthony Zafiris and Victor Medina of Fresno Pacific to continue the Tritons’ doubles domination. The No. 3 pair, sophomores Kazumi Negishi and Eric Rubens, completed the doubles sweep with an 8-4 win over Fresno Pacific’s Kyle Kropf and Greg Jackson.
“I think we did so well in doubles because we were at home and had the whole team cheering for us, which helps a lot,” Oechal said. “We’re competing at a higher level every match.”
The Sunbirds, however, managed to fare slightly better in singles action, winning three of six match-ups to scare the Tritons before they clinched the victory.
After No. 1 Molden did his job beating his Sunbird opponent 7-6, 6-1, the rest of UCSD’s singles players gave Fresno Pacific a chance in the match.
No. 2 Rubens fell to Fresno Pacific’s Foelz 6-7, 1-6; No. 3 Meister lost to Zafiris 2-6, 0-6 and No. 4 Oijala dropped his matchup against the Sunbird’s Bianco, 3-6, 6-7.
Despite taking an early 4-0 lead, the Tritons witnessed the Sunbirds work their way back to 4-3, putting the pressure on Megishi and sophomore Ramesh Thondapu to win their respective matches.
No. 5 Negishi needed an extra set to take out Medina, but came through with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 victory at the end of the third set. Negishi’s win clinched the victory for the Tritons, taking the pressure off of Thondapu, who promptly defeated Jackson 6-3, 6-1.
Head coach Eric Steidlmayer was very happy with the players’ performance.
“They have come a long way in their competitiveness,” he said.
However, Steidlmayer also said that he’s looking ahead.
“We have a long way to go if we are going to truly challenge as a national contender,” Steidlmayer said. “It is my hope that the players really take it upon themselves to examine their games and search for [a] way to improve.”
The Tritons will look to maintain their winning streak as they take on Sacramento State on March 14.
