The UCLA men’s tennis team pushed onwards through its fall tournament regimen, although this week produced mixed results.
No current Bruin advanced past the second round of the main draw at the Irvine Futures, but top-seeded 2016 alumnus Mackie McDonald swept the singles – his first professional – and the doubles titles Sunday.
Senior Joe Di Giulio and junior Martin Redlicki both lost in the second round – Redlicki retiring down a set and a break and Di Giulio falling in three sets to McDonald. Senior Gage Brymer, junior Austin Rapp and freshman Evan Zhu all fell in the first.
Like many Bruins, Rapp said he wanted to get in as much match experience as possible during the the offseason.
“I’ve been playing a lot this summer just to stay sharp and have a pretty full schedule,” Rapp said. “It’s good coming out of the summer to feel like I’m playing well and going into the college tournaments in the fall. I think that’s important.”
Di Giulio, who has won three matches the past two weeks, said that he wanted to continue improving his aggressiveness.
“In my last tournament, what worked well for me was making sure I come in a lot, like getting to the net and using my serve and my forehand,” Di Giulio said. “I’m just trying to be the aggressor of the point and use all my shots.”
For Redlicki, the Irvine Futures signified an end to a busy summer that saw him go from Boca Raton, Florida to Illinois to New York for the U.S. Open. The junior gained seven ATP points for reaching the semifinals in the Claremont Pro Club Classic two weeks ago and winning his first round match in Irvine.
Futures tournaments are especially valuable for the competitive atmosphere, according to Redlicki, which serves as a precursor for the spring collegiate season.
“The biggest thing is just getting in competitive matches because Futures – especially Futures – are when people are really competing for points and trying to make it on tour,” Redlicki said. “I played a guy who was 450th in the world in first round of Claremont and beat him in three sets, which helped my confidence a lot.”
In the preseason Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings released earlier this month, Redlicki placed 20th, which is fourth-highest among Pac-12 players. Brymer and junior Logan Staggs were the only other Bruins in the ITA rankings, starting 38th and 114th respectively.