Before the NCAA Tournament even began, the UCLA men’s
tennis team had already taken care of a number of important details
regarding a potential trip to Palo Alto and the Sweet 16.
On Sunday, the 10th-seeded Bruins (19-5) took care of the final
detail, defeating Colorado 4-0 and booking a date with
seventh-seeded Illinois next Saturday in the round of 16.
“I’m always really nervous about this match because
I want to get there, I know the guys want to get there, and
we’re starting to think about getting there,” UCLA
coach Billy Martin said. “My preaching is, “˜Guys,
you’ve got to earn it now. We could be sitting at home, and
arrangements don’t mean a thing.'”
And just like in years past, the arrangements were
extensive.
They had made hotel reservations.
They had planned their transportation ““ a charter bus this
season instead of an airplane.
They had even looked ahead to potential later-round
matchups.
But when it was time, they were able to focus on the task at
hand.
“We did a great job right before the match. In the locker
room, Coach said, “˜If we don’t win this match, we
don’t go.’ Then you refocus right away, right before
the match, and I think that’s enough,” junior Chris
Surpol said.
“You can project all you want, but not while you’re
playing. Without now, we won’t have Stanford.”
Against Colorado, the defending national champion Bruins stormed
out to an early lead in doubles and never looked back.
Juniors Ben Kohlloeffel and Philipp Gruendler, the
nation’s second-ranked doubles team, cruised to their 25th
consecutive doubles victory with an 8-3 win at No. 1, and redshirt
junior Chris Surapol and freshman Haythem Abid gave UCLA the
doubles point with an 8-4 victory at No. 2.
Following the doubles point, straight-set victories from
Kohlloeffel, Surapol and Abid set the team’s travel plans in
motion.
“We really have to focus on every single opponent, because
if we look ahead and we lose, it doesn’t take us
anywhere,” said Kohlloeffel, whose technical 6-0, 6-0 victory
over No. 51 Eric Molnar showed exactly why he is ranked No. 1 in
the country. “That’s why it’s not hard to
focus.”
Kohlloeffel is 39-4 on the year and has won 19 of his last 20
matches.
After Kohlloeffel had finished his day’s work and joined
his teammates in the stands, Surapol battled his way to a 6-2, 6-3
victory over Chad Tsuda, a player who had defeated Surapol many
years ago when he was playing juniors. Surapol is 20-1 in dual
matches this season.
The attention then turned to Court 2, where Abid was closing out
his 6-2, 6-4 victory to give the Bruins the win.
“I didn’t play great tennis, but mentally I was good
and physically I was there,” Abid said. “I didn’t
give many chances to my opponent.”
After Saturday’s 4-0 victory against overmatched Stony
Brook and Sunday’s thrashing of Colorado, the competition
will now take a marked step up. The seventh-seeded Illini (24-6)
advanced to the Sweet 16 with two 4-0 victories of their own.
The last time these tennis powerhouses met was a match for the
ages, as UCLA registered a 4-3 victory in the semifinals of the
2004 NCAA Tournament, breaking Illinois’ 64-match winning
streak in the process.
“It’s going to be a real dogfight,” Martin
said. “I guarantee those guys will have that match in the
back of their mind.”