While Mother Nature may have wiped out the team’s ability
to practice, she could not wipe out its ability to win.
The No. 1 UCLA men’s tennis team (8-0) was kept from the
courts last Tuesday and Wednesday because of rain, but the players
worked themselves into mid-season form in a sweep of the Arizona
schools Friday and Saturday.
Arizona State was first on the weekend agenda as the Sun Devils
visited Westwood on Friday afternoon. Though the tennis was less
than spectacular, the Bruins cruised to a 6-1 win against the
overmatched Sun Devils.
Arizona State falls to 3-3 on the season. Saturday’s
match-up with No. 47 Arizona was supposed to be a tougher challenge
though it turned out to be nothing of the kind. The Bruins coasted,
securing the victory in a 7-0 yawner. Arizona dropped to 5-3 with
the loss.
Head coach Billy Martin was quite pleased with his team’s
improvement on Saturday.
“I thought we played much better today than against
Arizona State,” he said.
The Bruins started the match by winning the doubles point for
the eighth time in eight chances this year.
At No. 1 doubles, Rodrigo Grilli and Marcin Matkowski defeated
Carl Hagman and Paul Warkentin, 8-2. And at No. 2, Tobias Clemens
and Lassi Ketola beat Whi Kim and Daniel Andrus, also 8-2.
Clemens and Ketola, the nation’s No. 39 doubles team, are
undefeated together this season, playing superb tennis.
“Toby and Lassi are probably playing the best doubles
I’ve seen them play together,” Martin said.
Clemens agreed.
“Lassi and I are really clicking right now,” he
said.
Every singles player was clicking against Arizona as no one
dropped a set.
At No. 1, Clemens downed Kim 6-2, 7-5. After losing the first
two games, Clemens won 10 straight before being challenged late in
the second set.
“I was sleeping the first two games,” he said.
“But I pulled it through.” At No. 2, Marcin Matkowski
was wide awake, as he beat Hagman 6-4, 6-1.
Grilli also controlled his match, beating Colin O’Grady
7-5, 6-3 at No. 3. At No. 4, Efran Djahangiri breezed to a 6-3, 6-4
victory over Warkentin, while Ketola won 6-3, 6-2 over Andrus at
No. 5.
Chris Lam coasted to a 6-0, 6-2 victory over previously
undefeated Roger Matalonga at No. 6.
If one negative is to be taken from the Bruins’ dominating
performance, it is their continued weak play at No. 3 doubles.
“I’m a little concerned about third doubles, quite
honestly,” Martin said.
This was the third consecutive match that the No. 3 doubles team
was beaten. This time it was Djahangiri and Chris Surapol, losing
to Matalonga and O’Grady, 8-4.
The team left Sunday for Kentucky, where they will take on the
No. 11 Wildcats today before starting play in the National Team
Indoors on Thursday.