ATHENS, Ga. “”mdash; Just a few points, a few inches, a few calls
away from the NCAA Championship match, the UCLA men’s tennis
team fell just short.
The No. 6 Bruins (24-4) were thwarted once again in their quest
for a national title, this time by No. 7 Vanderbilt, 4-3, in
Monday’s semifinal during the NCAA Championships at the Dan
Magill Tennis Center.
The loss extended a 19-year national championship drought. As in
seasons past, 2003 just wasn’t meant to be.
“We certainly had chances, and we’ll kick ourselves
for the next few months,” head coach Billy Martin said.
“It just didn’t go our way today.”
In a match that started at noon EST and didn’t end until
after 6 p.m., the Bruins rode an emotional roller coaster that
ended in a valley instead of a peak.
After losing the doubles point to an inspired seventh-seeded
Vanderbilt team (27-3) that upset No. 2 Baylor on Sunday, the
Bruins refused to surrender.
UCLA promptly came out and won the first set in five of six
singles matches. The only player to lose was Tobias Clemens,
currently ranked No. 5 in the country.
Clemens had his hands full all day with Vanderbilt’s Bobby
Reynolds, ranked No. 1. Reynolds played virtually error-free tennis
and put his team ahead 2-0 with a 6-3, 6-4 victory. The loss was
Clemens’ first since March 3.
UCLA answered back with a win on court five, as senior
co-captain Erfan Djahangiri registered a 6-4, 6-3 victory over
Vanderbilt’s Zach Dailey.
Another Bruin senior was next to finish ““ Lassi Ketola
closed out his match with authority on court six, beating Lewis
Smith 6-1, 6-2.
The other senior Bruin co-captain, Rodrigo Grilli, was the third
to score, playing his best match of the tournament to beat Matt
Lockin 6-4, 7-5.
With a 3-2 lead for the match and one-set leads on every
remaining court, things looked promising for UCLA.
Then again, things aren’t always what they seem.
Sophomore Chris Lam, after a fantastic comeback in his first-set
tiebreaker, battled back with six straight points after being down
4-1 and dropped the second set 6-4.
After a 30-minute rain delay suspended play, Vanderbilt’s
Scott Brown finished Lam off, 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-2, to even the match
at 3-3.
The attention then turned to Marcin Matkowski and Chad Harris on
court No. 2.
Matkowski, after winning the first set, dropped a tough
second-set tiebreaker. The pro-Vanderbilt crowd carried Harris
through, and he clinched victory for his team with a 5-7, 7-6(2),
6-4 win.
“I’m so proud of this team,” Vanderbilt head
coach Ken Flack said after the match. “This year was our
first time in the Sweet 16. Then it was our first time in the
quarterfinals. Then it was our first time in the semifinals. Now
it’s our first time in the finals.”
“The way they can handle all these expectations is just
awesome.”
And while the Commodores await the title match with Illinois
today thinking about how awesome they are, the Bruins can’t
help but wonder, “What if?”
What if Lam had hung in his second set?
What if Clemens could’ve gotten one more break?
What if Matkowski could’ve put it away when he had the
chance?
“I keep replaying those two match points in my mind,
already 20 times,” Martin said.
“What if’s” aside, one thing is certain.
Monday’s match was the last team match of the Bruin
seniors’ careers. Djahangiri, Ketola and Grilli will now be
moving on to other things.
“I just feel incredibly sorry for the three
seniors,” Clemens said.
“It’s tough,” Martin said. “I feel like
sometimes it’s like losing one of my kids. I’ve had
them for four or five years, and I’m very attached to
them.
“I like them as young men, not just as tennis players.
It’s difficult to watch them grow up and get close to them
and see them on a daily basis, and then to think that they’re
going to be gone.”
“It was a great experience, and it’s just so amazing
to be with these guys,” Ketola said. “I’m just so
proud of this team.”
But as another tennis season winds down, UCLA again goes home,
heartbroken, without the championship trophy that has eluded them
since 1984.
Ңbull;Ӣbull;Ӣbull;
In the other NCAA semifinal match, No. 1 Illinois beat No. 5
Stanford 4-2.
Illinois will play Vanderbilt today, at 1 p.m. for the NCAA
Championship. Illinois (30-0) is trying to finish the season
undefeated.