UCLA
Grand Canyon
Men's Tennis Opens NCAA Play Friday at LATC
May 01, 2019 | Men's Tennis
ON SERVE
The 11th-seeded UCLA men's tennis team will host three NCAA Championships first- and second-round matches at Los Angeles Tennis Center, starting with a doubleheader Friday. Oklahoma State and Ole Miss will get play started at 11 a.m., with the Bruins wrapping up the day's action against Grand Canyon at 2 p.m. The winners will meet Saturday at 3 p.m. to conclude a tripleheader with UCLA's women's tennis team, which is also hosting first- and second-round matches. Tickets will be available at the door at costs of $10 for adults and $8 for students and youths (ages 3-16). UCLA students will be admitted free of charge when the Bruins are participating.
LAST WEEK
The top-seeded Bruins reached the semifinal round of the Pac-12 Championships at Libbey Park in Ojai, Calif., before bowing out against No. 4 California. Ben Goldberg clinched UCLA's 4-0 win against eighth-seeded Utah in the quarterfinal round Thursday, while Keegan Smith and Govind Nanda turned in dominant performances in singles play to make it a perfect day for the conference's regular-season champions. The Bruins also claimed the doubles point without a loss. Patrick Zahraj picked up a singles win Friday against Cal to pull UCLA into a 1-1 tie after dropping the doubles point, but that represented the Bruins lone singles win of the day. Bjorn Hoffmann, Paul Barretto and Jacob Brumm triumphed in the Golden Bears' 4-1 win.
CRESSY, SMITH PICKED FOR NCAA SINGLES, DOUBLES
Smith and Maxime Cressy have been selected to participate in the singles and doubles competitions at the upcoming NCAA Division I Men's Tennis Championships in Orlando, Fla., the NCAA Division I Men's Tennis Subcommittee announced Tuesday. The tandem of Cressy-Smith earned an automatic qualification as the Pac-12's highest-rated team. The pair is seeded second and achieved All-America status as a result. Cressy and Smith were also chosen for at-large spots in the singles draw. Nanda is the eighth singles alternate. Competitions will take place May 20-25 at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla. The University of Central Florida and the Greater Orlando Sports Commission will serve as hosts.
HISTORY MADE
UCLA's April 25 win against Utah in the Pac-12 Championships quarterfinal round marked No. 593 in the career of Billy Martin, making him the program's all-time leader in head-coaching victories. Martin passed mentor and predecessor Glenn Bassett, who guided UCLA from 1967-1993 and led seven teams to NCAA championships. The 1975 title-winning team featured Martin, who also won the NCAA singles championship in his one season before turning professional. Martin went on to assist Bassett for 10 years before taking the reins in 1994.
MORE ON MARTIN: During his tenure, Martin's teams have accumulated 15 regular-season Pac-12 championships, four conference tournament crowns and the 2005 NCAA title. Just two of Martin's teams have finished outside of the top five teams at the season-ending NCAA Championships. They have also not finished outside of the top three teams in the Pac-10/12 standings. He has earned Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors five times (1996, 2012-14, 2018) and the ITA National Coach of the Year award once (1996). Martin has also led three players (Benjamin Kohlloeffel in 2006, Marcos Giron in 2014 and Mackenzie McDonald in 2016) to NCAA singles titles and three pairs (Justin Gimelstob-Srdjan Muskatirovic in 1996, McDonald-Martin Redlicki in 2016 and Redlicki-Evan Zhu in 2018) to the NCAA doubles crown. An ITA Tennis Hall of Famer, Martin was named the "Junior Player of the Century" by Inside Tennis Magazine.
BY THE NUMBERS
A number of streaks have been kept alive for UCLA as it heads into NCAA play:
4 โ UCLA has won four straight Pac-12 regular-season championships.
29 โ Dating back to April 16, 2015, UCLA teams have won 29 straight Pac-12 regular-season matches.
59 โ Martin has led his teams to 59 straight home wins, a streak that started May 8, 2016
13 โ The tandem of Cressy and sophomore Smith hold a 15-0 doubles record this season.
10 โ Sophomore Keegan Smith has won nine straight singles decisions since March 14.
UCLA IN THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
The UCLA men's tennis program is the only one to qualify for the NCAA Championships each year since the tournament format was adopted, running its streak to 43 years with its latest selection. The Bruins have collected 16 NCAA team titles, including four since the changeover in 1977. They have also reached the Round of 16 each year. UCLA holds a 122-38 record in NCAA play, including a combined 8-0 mark against potential regional opponents Oklahoma State (2-0) and Ole Miss (6-0). The Bruins' No. 11 seed marks a first in program history.
BRUINS IN THE RANKINGS
The Bruins moved up two spots to No. 11 in the latest Oracle/ITA team rankings, announced Wednesday. They are also represented by three singles players and a pair of doubles teams, including the nation's No. 2 tandem. Cressy, who has a 12-3 individual record and a 4-3 mark against nationally-ranked opponents, stayed in the top-20 at No. 18. Smith's 21st win aided his six-spot jump to No. 36, while Nanda dropped to No. 68. Cressy-Smith's two wins moved the pair to a career (for both players) and season-high No. 2, while Cressy-Nanda was tied at No. 68. The team sits at No. 10 in the Tennis Channel/USTA College Tennis Top 25 Rankings, most recently updated Wednesday.
SMITH EARNS FINAL PAC-12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONOR
Smith garnered Pac-12 Player of the Week recognition for the week of April 15-21, the conference announced Tuesday, April 23. The sophomore clinched the Bruins' undefeated Pac-12 regular season on Saturday, April 20, holding off Arizona's Filip Malbasic in three sets. He also defeated ASU's Dominik Kellovsky in straight sets one day earlier. Both wins came on Court 2. Smith also teamed with Cressy to complete an undefeated regular season in doubles play, as the pair knocked off two nationally-ranked pairs. In beating No. 11 Kellovsky-Nathan Ponwith of ASU and No. 71 Igor Karpovets-Jonas Ziverts of Arizona, Smith-Cressy earned UCLA's first win each day. The award marks the first of the season for Smith and second of the San Diego native's career.
PAC-12 BEST: UCLA men's tennis has captured 42 weekly awards in the program's history and a league-best four this season. Cressy (March 12, April 2) and Govind Nanda (April 16) previously won in 2019. UCLA's Abi Altick received the women's award Tuesday, marking the eighth time that Bruins have swept the honors and second this year (April 2 โ Cressy, Jada Hart).
FRESH FACES
The UCLA singles lineup has undergone a youth movement over the course of the dual-match season, as four true freshmen have held spots. In the Bruins' Feb. 26 win against visiting GCU, three of those first-year playersโNanda, Eric Hahn and Mathew Tsolakyanโtallied wins. Tsolakyan provided the clinching point in a 4-2 victory. Nanda leads the team with 15 dual-match singles victories. Zahraj has also been a pivotal part of the Bruins' singles and doubles lineups, participating in each match and clinching marquee wins versus No. 11 Notre Dame (Feb. 15), No. 9 USC (April 5) and No. 27 ASU (April 19). For good measure, freshman Max Wild teamed with Nanda for a doubles win in the GCU match.
KATZ FAMILY SCOREBOARD
UCLA tennis and the UCLA Athletic Department debuted the Katz Family Scoreboard Wednesday, Jan. 9 in front of donors and special invited guests at LATC. The ceremony culminated in a ribbon cutting by the Katz Family, Director of Athletics Dan Guerrero, Martin and women's tennis head coach Stella Sampras Webster. Each, along with Sr. Associate Athletic Director, External Relations Josh Rebholz, made remarks highlighting the meaning of the Katz Family's generous donation and the opportunities the scoreboard will provide the UCLA tennis programs. The Katz Family Scoreboard's Daktronics display, measuring 18 feet high and 31.2 feet wide, is among the largest LED video screens in collegiate tennis. Stationed at the east end of LATC's main stadium courts, the board has a 13HD pixel pitch capable of switching between content playback mode and video mode using Show Control. RGB LED lights, meanwhile, will allow for a multitude of graphics possibilities. Also new to the match-day experience is a custom JBL speaker system set to improve audio on the front courts while introducing sound to the back courts.
PROFESSIONAL BRUINS
Cressy played the role of underdog on the way to his first singles title on the ATP Challenger Tour, taking the top spot at the Cleveland Open on Feb. 2. His 6-7(4), 7-6(6), 6-3 victory over former Ohio State player Mikael Torpegaard elevated him to a career-best ranking of No. 313 among singles players on the ATP World Tour. He has also shined in doubles play, tallying nine ITF Futures titles since Oct. 2017 and picking up his first ATP Challenger title with partner Bernardo Saraiva Jan. 12 in Columbus, Ohio. Cressy is not the only Bruin having success in professional tournaments this year. One year after reaching the second round of the Australian Open and taking third-seeded Grigor Dimitrov to five sets, McDonald again advanced into the Grand Slam's second round, defeating Andrey Rublev of Russia, 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4. He also reached the final round of the RBC Tennis Championships of Dallas and the semifinal round of the Delray Beach Open in February. Giron also got off on the right foot in 2019, defeating Darian King of Barbados, 6-4, 6-4, in the Orlando Open singles final. It marked the first ATP Challenger Tour singles title of Giron's career. The 2014 NCAA singles champion teamed with former Virginia player JC Aragone to claim another Challenger title when the pair earned the doubles title at Indian Wells, Calif. Giron also had a memorable week at the BNP Paribas Open, where he made an improbable run to the Round of 32 after advancing through qualifiers. For good measure, Nanda knocked off the recently-graduated Redlicki, 4-6, 7-6, 6-0, in the Tucson Futures singles final on Jan. 13.
2017-18 IN REVIEW
The Bruins turned in one of the finest seasons put together by a Billy Martin-coached team in 2018, posting 30 wins for the first time in his 25 years at the helm. The Pac-12 regular-season and tournament champions won 19 consecutive matches down the stretchโincluding an 8-0 record in conference playโbefore bowing out against Ohio State in the NCAA Championships semifinal round. Redlicki (Singles Player of the Year), Redlicki-Zhu (Doubles Team of the Year), Smith (Freshman of the Year) and Martin (Coach of the Year) swept the Pac-12 year-end awards. The year of tremendous team success ended with standout individual performances, as Redlicki-Zhu won the 13th NCAA doubles title in program history. Smith and Austin Rapp reached the doubles semifinal round, while Redlicki made the NCAA Singles Championships final four.
FALL BALL
It was a busy tournament season for a number of Bruins, including six who made their debuts in blue and gold. Smith got things started on one of the fall's biggest stages, winning once at the Saint Francis Health System ITA All-American Championships in Tulsa, Okla. before falling in three sets against top-seeded Nuno Borges of Mississippi State. Hahn reached the singles Round of 16 at the ITA Regional Championships, while Smith-Bryce Pereira was dealt a quarterfinal-round loss in doubles play. Hahn again impressed with a singles quarterfinal-round berth at the SoCal Intercollegiate Championships, while Pereira and Wild made the quarterfinal round in doubles action. Smith reached the singles and doubles (with partner Hance) semifinals at the Jack Kramer Collegiate Tournament. Connor Rapp advanced to the Flight One singles and doubles (with Lucas Bellamy) championship rounds of the Larry Easley Memorial Classic before coming up short in each, though Pereira and Wild did prove victorious in the doubles final. Rapp led the way with seven fall singles wins, while Hahn (six), Wild (six) and Tsolakyan (one) notched the first victories of their respective careers. Pereira and Wild each posted a 7-2 doubles record, including a 5-1 mark as partners. In January, the doubles pair of Nanda and Smith collected the Sherwood Collegiate Cup doubles title, while each also reached the semifinal round of the singles draw. Zahraj joined Nanda in debuting at Sherwood, while Roscoe Bellamy saw his first action at the National Collegiate Tennis Classic one week prior.
DE VILLIERS PROMOTED
Rikus de Villiers was elevated to the position of assistant coach with UCLA men's tennis on June 18, 2018. A familiar face to the program, de Villiers served in the role of volunteer assistant coach for five of the previous six seasons. He replaced Grant Chen, who was named head coach at Southern Methodist University. De Villiers joined the UCLA staff in the fall of 2012 and immediately aided the Bruins in their run to the final round of the NCAA Championships the following spring. Over the course of his five seasons on staff, UCLA registered an overall record of 124-28 (.816) and dropped just two regular-season Pac-12 matches (32-2). The Bruins also secured three Pac-12 tournament titles during de Villiers' time as a volunteer. He coached American Ryan Harrison on the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour during his time away from the program in 2015-16. Wil Martin assumed the role of volunteer assistant coach.
Players Mentioned
