UCLA
Georgia
UCLA Women Open at Home, Men Head to Florida
February 01, 2017 | Men's Tennis, Women's Tennis
Women's
The No. 20 UCLA women's tennis team opens its home schedule this week, when it hosts UC Santa Barbara Friday (1:30 p.m., PT), before taking on Saint Mary's Saturday (12:00 p.m., PT). The Bruins picked up four spots in the Oracle/ITA rankings Wednesday after a split in Atlanta versus two higher-ranked opponents.
Redshirt freshman Jada Hart will look to ride the momentum from last week's success, which earned her Pac-12 Player of the Week honors. The Bruins topped then-No. 20 Kentucky Friday, and a doubles-clinching victory by the ninth-ranked team of Hart and freshman Ena Shibahara over top-ranked Aldila Sutjiadi and Mami Adachi of the Wildcats set the tone for the day. Kristin Wiley and No. 4 Shibahara picked up straight-set wins in singles, and Hart went on to take the clinching point there, as well, as she defeated Justina Mikulskyte, 6-3, 6-2.
Sunday was a day of tiebreakers for the Bruins and No. 11 Georgia Tech. The clinching point in doubles play again came down to Hart and Shibahara, who eventually dropped a back-and-forth 12-10 tiebreaker and the point to the Yellow Jackets' Rasheeda McAdoo and Johnnise Renaud. Junior Terri Fleming, an Atlanta native, picked up a dramatic 7-6 (9-7), 7-5 win in singles play, while Hart bounced back from an early disadvantage to defeat Georgia Tech's Kenya Jones, 0-6, 6-1, 6-3. The Yellow Jackets ultimately pulled out the win, 4-2.
The Bruins hold a 30-0 all-time record versus the Gauchos, who they will face Friday. They most recently faced UCSB in their 2014 home opener and tallied a 7-0 win (Jan. 21). Meanwhile, UCLA holds a 7-0 all-time mark against Sunday's opponent, Saint Mary's, including a 6-1 win at Riviera Country Club last season (Jan. 29).
Men's
The No. 6 UCLA men's tennis team hits the road for the first time and will face a stiff test from two highly-ranked opponents at the Pac-12/SEC Showdown in Gainesville, Fla. The Bruins will first see No. 5 Georgia Saturday morning (7:00 a.m., PT) before taking on No. 11 Florida Sunday (10:30 a.m., PT).
Behind consecutive 4-0 sweeps of New Mexico (Jan. 28) and Lamar (Jan. 29), UCLA qualified for the ITA National Team Indoor Championships, to be played in Charlottesville, Va. from Feb. 17-Feb. 20. From an individual standpoint, junior Martin Redlicki shined, as he did not drop a single set during the two matches. Along with his partner, freshman Evan Zhu, the pair posted a 6-1 win versus New Mexico, and then clinched the doubles point with a 6-4 advantage over their Lamar counterparts Sunday. He also posted two straight-set wins on the singles courts and was named Pac-12 Player of the Week for his efforts.
It was also a big week for junior Logan Staggs, who posted both clinching points Saturday versus the Lobos. Along with senior Gage Brymer, the duo picked up a 6-1 victory over Sean Baklini and Jorge Escutia to get the Bruins off on the right foot. Then, after dropping the first set, Staggs rebounded to beat Escutia on Court 5 in singles play, 5-7, 6-3, 6-2. Junior Austin Rapp, meanwhile, clinched the 2-0 weekend and trip to Charlottesville with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Lamar's Logan Powell on Sunday.
UCLA recorded two victories over Georgia last year, including a 6-1 advantage at the Los Angeles Tennis Center as part of the 2016 Pac-12/SEC Showdown (Jan. 30). The teams also faced off in the ITA National Team Indoor Championships, where the Bruins rallied from a 3-2 deficit to defeat the Bulldogs, 4-3 (Feb. 12).
Last year's Pac-12/SEC Showdown was also intended to feature a Bruins-Gators matchup, but rain delayed UCLA's chance to avenge a 4-3 loss to Florida that took place Feb. 1, 2015.
Players Mentioned
