Seniors Lin, Pazdernick aid m. tennis
Graduating netters may be needed later if injuries continue
By Sarah Harrison
Actions speak louder than words.
A familiar phrase to most and the perfect way to describe UCLA
men’s tennis player Eric Lin.
Lin, a man of few words, let his actions speak for themselves
this weekend in the Men’s Invitational Collegiate Singles
tournament in Ojai. Lin entered the tournament as the defending
champion and ended the tournament second to Stanford’s Ricky
Becker.
The Invitational tournament provided an opportunity for college
teams to enter singles players who were not participating in the
overshadowing Pac-10 Championships.
"We could only send five players to the championships," UCLA
head coach Billy Martin said. "Lin has been playing No. 6 and not
really winning his matches, so it should have been no surprise that
he was playing in the Invitational tournament."
After Lin beat Chris Wong in the second round, he insisted that
the No. 1 seed did not add any pressure to the tournament.
"There is really no pressure," Lin said. "I don’t think that it
will be easy, but I think that if I play well I will have a chance
to win."
Lin did play well, beating Wong, Oregon’s Dougal Williams and
Charles Hoeveler in straight sets. His opportunity to take the
tournament had déjà vu undercurrents, as he met Becker
for the second time in the finals. Lin lost the first set
decisively 6-1, but fought back and forced Becker to a tiebreaker.
Lin, however, was unable to repeat last year’s performance and
walked off the court with second place.
"Lin got more match experience this weekend," Martin said. "He
won a few matches, which I think he needed, so I think that the
tournament was good for him."
* * *
Two other Bruins entered the tournament along with Lin, namely
Karl Pazdernick and David Bain. Neither one of these players has
seen dual match play this year, and they were happy for the
opportunity to get out on the courts this weekend. Bain won his
first match against John Deakin but then was beaten by Becker 6-0,
6-3. Pazdernik made it to the quarterfinals, where he lost to
Hoeveler 6-1, 6-3.
"It is a chance to show a few people that I can play," Bain
said. "It is also a chance to compete and have a good time."
This weekend may have provided Pazdernik and Bain with more than
just a good time. If injuries play a role in the lineup, these two
Bruins will see some court time and will appreciate the practice
that they received this weekend.
"If Loren Peters can’t come back (from knee surgery), then those
two guys will be in the No. 7 and 8 singles positions," Martin
said. "There are chances that they might play if someone gets
hurt."
While this prospect is remote, Pazdernik feels it would be a
nice ending to his four-year career. He is graduating this year,
but hopes to remain a Bruin a little while longer by attending UCLA
Law School.
While Pazdernik could have played at other schools, he decided
to come to UCLA and walked on the team his freshman year.
"I could have played at other schools," Pazdernik said. "I asked
myself, ‘If I got hurt the first day of practice and couldn’t play
tennis ever again, would I want to spend the rest of my college
days at that school?’ The answer was no for everywhere but
UCLA."
Even though he has hardly played, he does not regret the time
that he has spent with the team.
"I feel like I have been able to give something back to the
school," Pazdernik said. "The guys on the team are great. I
wouldn’t do it any different."