Wednesday’s match against UC Irvine marked the beginning of a season filled with high expectations for the UCLA men’s tennis team. Despite the pressure, the Bruins played as if the season debut was business as usual.
The Bruins kicked their season off with a dominant performance over UC Irvine, winning the match 7-0.
“I think it was a good first match for us. I’m always a little leery of the first match, especially for our freshmen; there’s sometimes a little bit of nerves there,” said coach Billy Martin.
If any nerves were felt, the Bruins did not show it. Instead, the team’s performance only demonstrated why UCLA is among the top teams in the nation.
Senior Clay Thompson, rated the No. 1 singles player in the nation, won easily over his opponent with the help of a lightning-fast serve and strong play near the net.
Junior Dennis Mkrtchian, who posted the most singles victories on the team last season, easily dispatched his opponent in two quick sets to help the Bruins to victory.
“I played well, and came out ready. It’s just a match, and you just need to come out and take care of business,” Mkrtchian said.
The Bruins showcased a roster stacked with talent, as almost every individual player for the Bruins won his match within the first two sets.
“Not only do we have really good players individually, but we’re so deep as a team,” said freshman Gage Brymer.
Among the many solid performers for the Bruins were a handful of talented freshmen who showed that they are ready to compete at the highest level of collegiate tennis.
“The freshmen are hungry – they want to play, they want to get better, and they’re all good guys off the court,” Mkrtchian said.
Freshman MackenzieMcDonald, a highly touted recruit out of high school, stepped up big for UCLA by winning his first set 6-1 and his second set 6-0.
Brymer was another young player who showed great poise and maturity in his first collegiate match as a member of the UCLA tennis team, winning his doubles match 4-3.
Despite the difference in talent between UCLA and UCI, Martin stressed to his players the importance of playing at a high level, regardless of the opponent.
“I felt like we stayed focused. When you play a team that’s maybe not so strong, there’s a tendency to kind of relax and play at their level. I always stress that I want us to go out and play really solid tennis,” Martin said.
Players and coaches also seemed to agree that along with talent, chemistry was also a major factor in such a stellar team performance, especially in the doubles matches.
Among the notable performers in doubles for the Bruins were Thompson and freshman Joseph Di Giulio, as well as Mkrtchian and sophomore Karue Sell.
“I couldn’t ask for a better group of guys to work with,” Mkrtchian said. “In my three years at UCLA, this is a closest a team has been with each other.”