UCLA
BYU
No. 11 UCLA Beats BYU, 7-0, in Opener
January 15, 2020 | Men's Tennis
LOS ANGELES โ The No. 11 UCLA men's tennis team registered a commanding performance in their 2020 dual-match opener Wednesday, defeating BYU by a 7-0 score at Los Angeles Tennis Center.
Junior Connor Hance, who missed a majority of the 2018-19 season, clinched the victory on Court 6. Junior Keegan Smith posted his first top-court victory since 2018, beating a ranked opponent in the process. Freshman Drew Baird added the first dual-match win of his career.
UCLA's Court-3 combination of Bryce Pereira and Patrick Zahraj, the Bruins' winningest returning doubles tandem, took six of seven games from David Ball and Ben Gajardo to notch the team's first win of the season. With Baird and Connor Rapp nearing a win of their own on Court 2, Smith and Govind Nanda clinched the doubles point with a 6-4 defeat of Sean Hill and Mateo Vereau Melendez up top.
The Bruins' lone senior, Ben Goldberg, earned the first singles victory with an authoritative 6-2, 6-1 performances against Jack Barnett on Court 4. Seventh-ranked Smith got off to a slow start against No. 80 Hill on the top court, but took over down the stretch for a 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 triumph.
Hance needed a tiebreaker to take his first set from Ball on Court 6 before doubling up his opponent for the clinching 7-6 (4), 6-3 win. The Torrance, Calif. native, who went 18-8 as a freshman, played in just one dual match last season.
Nanda was in a fierce first-set battle with Matheus Ferreira Leite on Court 2, eventually edging his Cougar counterpart by a 9-7 score. The second set went much smoother for the All-Pac-12 Second Teamer, who ultimately cruised to a 7-6 (7), 6-3 win. Baird, meanwhile, started strong against Ferreira Leite on Court 3 before coming out on top of his debut in three sets, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4.
In the finale, Zahraj dominated his first set before receiving a counterpunch from Gajardo on Court 5. A tit-for-tat third set resulted in a tiebreaker, which the UCLA sophomore captured by a 7-5 score. Zahraj took the final two points to secure the win.
The Bruins will briefly return to tournament play when they head to Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks, Calif. for the Sherwood Collegiate Cup this weekend. Play continues through Monday, Jan. 20. They will return to dual-match action Saturday, Jan. 25 in their ITA Kick-Off Weekend opener versus San Diego State at LATC.
Tennis Match Results
BYU vs UCLA
1/15/2020 at Los Angeles, CA
(Los Angeles Tennis Center)
#11 UCLA 7, BYU 0
Singles competition
1. #7 Keegan Smith (UCLA) def. #80 Sean Hill (BYU) 4-6, 6-3, 6-1
2. Govind Nanda (UCLA) def. M. Vereau Melendez (BYU) 7-6 (9-7), 6-3
3. Drew Baird (UCLA) def. M. Ferreira Leite (BYU) 6-3, 3-6, 6-4
4. Ben Goldberg (UCLA) def. Jack Barnett (BYU) 6-2, 6-1
5. Patrick Zahraj (UCLA) def. Ben Gajardo (BYU) 6-0, 3-6, 7-6 (7-5)
6. Connor Hance (UCLA) def. David Ball (BYU) 7-6 (7-4), 6-3
Doubles competition
1. Govind Nanda/Keegan Smith (UCLA) def. Sean Hill/M. Vereau Melendez (BYU) 6-4
2. Drew Baird/Connor Rapp (UCLA) vs. Jack Barnett/M. Ferreira Leite (BYU) 5-3, unfinished
3. Bryce Pereira/Patrick Zahraj (UCLA) def. David Ball/Ben Gajardo (BYU) 6-1
Match Notes:
BYU 0-1
UCLA 1-0; National ranking #11
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (4,1,6,2,3,5)
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,1
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
4,1,6,2,3,5
Players Mentioned
