University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
No. 2 UCLA Men's Tennis Plays Host To Fresno State
Feb. 24, 1998
This Week - Bruins Host Fresno State
The No. 2 ranked UCLA men's tennis team's next action will be Sun., March 1 when Fresno State pays a visit to Westwood for a 1 p.m. match. There is no admission charge to home matches which are played on campus at the Los Angeles Tennis Center.
About This Week's Opponent
Ranked No. 51 in the nation entering the season, Fresno State brings a 2-1 record into the week. In their latest action, the Bulldogs won 4-2 over Oregon on Feb. 21 after falling to USC 2-3 the previous day. Sharing the No. 1 singles position for Fresno this season have been P.J. Dormire (1-0) and Andy Scorteanu (0-2).
Last Year vs. Fresno State
UCLA won both matches against Fresno State, improving the all-time record to 16-0. The Bruins won 5-2 at the USTA/ITA National Team Indoor Championships on Feb. 20, then 6-1 at UCLA on Mar. 5.
At Team Indoors, UCLA won the doubles point and claimed victories on court Nos. 1, 3, 5 and 6. In the home match, the Bruins again earned the doubles point and also claimed singles positions one through five.
The Bruins Last Week - At National Team Indoors
UCLA head coach Billy Martin notched career victory number 100 despite UCLA posting a 1-2 record at the USTA/ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Team Championships Feb. 19-22 in Louisville, Kentucky. Seeded second in the tournament, the Bruins were attempting to three-peat their Indoor Championship Title, but were upset by No. 15 ranked Illinois, 3-4, in the first round. UCLA then fell 2-5 to No. 5 Mississippi in consolation play, before rebounding for a 4-3 win over No. 9 Florida.
In the opener against Illinois, action could not have been much closer as three singles matches went to a third set and two others needed first set tie-breakers. Jean-Noel Grinda and Alex Decret posted three-set victories at Nos. 1 and 4, while Vince Allegre withstood a tie-breaker in his victory at No. 2.
In the match against No. 5 Mississippi , UCLA started strong by claiming the doubles point with wins on courts one and two. However, only Allegre managed to win in singles as he prevailed on court No. 2 in a three set match. Grinda suffered only his second dual-match loss of the season despite taking 18th ranked Sebastien DeChaunac to a tiebreaker.
The Bruins rallied for Saturday's match against No. 9 Florida, earning career victory No. 100 for head coach Billy Martin with the 4-3 win. The Bruins again claimed the doubles point, this time with wins on courts two and three. Grinda, Matt Breen and Noah Newman proceeded to post singles victories. Alex Decret took his No. 4 opponent to a third set tiebreaker before succumbing.
Notables
Saturday's 4-3 victory over Florida marked the 100th dual-match win in the career of UCLA head coach Billy Martin.
Jason Cook, who played No. 4 in the first four matches of the season, injured his right wrist on Mon., Jan. 26 and has not played since. Chris Sands did not compete in singles in Louisville, but did play No. 3 doubles with Vince Allegre.
Looking Ahead
The Bruins host cross-town rival USC on Wed., Mar. 4 at 1:30 p.m. and will send players to compete in the Pacific Coast Doubles Tournament in LaJolla Mar. 5-8.