On an average game day, the Los Angeles Tennis Center is fairly quiet save for the gentle popping noise of rubber balls against rackets. But on Wednesday, the rhythmic sound of the back-and-forth hitting was overwhelmed by shouts and cheers from the stands, as an emotional match between the UCLA and Baylor men’s tennis teams was underway.
Amidst the roar of it’s home crowd, the Bruins fell to the Bears 4-2, in their first loss at home this season.
The Bruins fell behind early after losing the doubles point, which was decided by three tiebreaker points, all of which Baylor won. From that moment on, UCLA was unable to gain the upper hand in the match.
“It was ridiculously close in the doubles. I mean three tiebreakers – that’s rare,” said freshman Gage Brymer.
The tight competition between No. 3 UCLA (11-2) and Baylor carried over from doubles into singles, in which many sets were determined by just a single point.
“I think there was a lot of bad luck today,” said sophomore Karue Sell. “Everything was so close. I think between singles and doubles we lost five tiebreakers.”
After falling behind 1-0, the Bruins, who are usually dominant in singles play, attempted to rally back against the Bears. However, Baylor proved just as strong in singles play as they were in doubles competition.
“I knew it was going to be a real battle,” said coach Billy Martin. “I think their coaching staff always does such a great job keeping them in great physical condition – they never give up.”
Baylor, ranked 12th in the NCAA, is one of the more talented teams UCLA has faced in the regular season. Minor errors made by the Bruins were magnified into major problems against such a challenging opponent.
“From game sets, matches, all it comes down to is the little things, and I think that was definitely true today,” Brymer said.
The advantage constantly changed between teams, but the Bruins were unable to maintain any positive momentum.
“We didn’t take advantage of leading positions. We always seemed to let them come back and give them hope,” Martin said.
Even after losing the doubles point and two more set points, giving Baylor a 3-2 lead, the Bruins still had a chance to win the match. Unfortunately for UCLA, the deficit was too great to overcome, as senior Clay Thompson lost his final set, sealing the fate of the Bruins.
In the end, UCLA’s second loss of the season was a humbling one.
“I think it is an important experience because it shows that people can still beat us and we have to play one hundred percent every time,” Sell said.