Philipp Gruendler plays better when he’s angry. The
freshman, playing in the biggest match of his young career, quickly
found himself deep in a hole against Trojan senior Daniel Langre.
“It was like I went onto the court, and 10 minutes later
it’s 0-4,” Gruendler said. “I tanked the last two
games. It’s always on my mind that if I lose the first set
6-0, then I really want to win. I look up at the scoreboard and see
6-0 and I think to myself, “˜Oh, come on, don’t lose to
this guy.'” Perhaps it was a sheer case of jitters for
the young tennis player, one that is just starting to understand
the depth of the rivalry between UCLA and USC, that allowed Langre
to take such an early lead. A multitude of unforced errors and
impatient play made it seem the No. 5 singles match would be a
blowout for the Trojans. But Gruendler was far from being finished.
“I wasn’t safe on my backhand side, and I made so many
mistakes,” he said. After finally finding some semblance of
his game, Gruendler went on to dominate the next two sets, winning
6-2 and 6-3, sealing a crucial point for the Bruins. Given the
result was so close, UCLA was indeed fortunate that Gruendler
recaptured his form in time. “For him to come back after
losing the first set 6-0, that’s a heck of an effort for his
first really big match for us,” coach Billy Martin said.
“He must have fought hard to win that. Langre’s a hell
of a player.” The stage was set early as Gruendler got his
first taste of a true collegiate rivalry, complete with numerous
fans. Gruendler and doubles partner Aaron Yovan delivered an 8-3
victory over USC’s Drew Hoskins and Brian Wright, helping the
Bruins lock up the crucial doubles point. “I really enjoyed
playing in front of all those people. It’s really good to
know that there is someone cheering for you,” Gruendler said.
“It’s your game, it’s your stadium and those guys
are here for you.”
LAM BATTLES AL-AGBA: In perhaps the most
dramatic match of the afternoon, USC freshman Jamil Al-Agba
defeated Bruin junior Chris Lam for the second time this season,
this time a 6-1, 7-6 (4) decision. Lam also fell to Al-Agba in the
second round of the Sherwood Collegiate Cup earlier in the season.
Late in the second set, Lam found himself facing a double match
point with Al-Agba serving at 5-3. But the Trojan freshman
double-faulted ““ much to the delight of Bruin fans in
attendance ““Â and on the next point had a costly unforced
error, helping Lam get the service break. After holding serve and
breaking Al-Agba again, Lam forced the second set to go into a
tiebreaker. By then, however, teammate Alberto Francis had already
clinched the dual match for UCLA, and Lam fell to Al-Agba in the
tiebreaker.