There was a lot of uncertainty for UCLA going into the NCAA men’s tennis tournament selection show last week.
After losing to the USC Trojans in the semifinal of the Pac-12 tournament, the Bruins were unsure if their performance was enough to earn them hosting privileges for the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
It turns out that it was enough, with the Bruins taking the last hosting spot. The No. 16 UCLA men’s tennis team (15-9, 5-2 Pac-12) will be taking on Florida Gulf Coast University (17-5, 6-0 Atlantic Sun) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday at the Los Angeles Tennis Center. The winner of that dual match will go on to play the winner of the UC Santa Barbara versus Texas Tech dual match on Saturday.
“We were a little nervous about not hosting,” said coach Billy Martin. “We were all somewhat relieved when they announced that we would be hosting the first two rounds. To have it at home is a big advantage.”
FGCU earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament by winning its conference tournament, the Atlantic Sun Men’s Tennis Championship. This is the first time the program has qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
The Eagles went undefeated in their conference, but they haven’t beaten a team ranked in the top 50. Martin said that despite this he is still cautious.
“I never take anybody for granted, and I have always told our guys to respect our opponents but not fear them. We want to be ready for a tough battle,” Martin said. “We know they are going to be really excited and they are going to try to play their best tennis of the year.”
His players have the same attitude, but fear their possible second-round matchup.
“Florida Gulf Coast – I don’t want to say that we’re not worried about them, but we are definitely more focused on Texas Tech, our potential second match,” said freshman Martin Redlicki.
The Bruins have already faced the Texas Tech Red Raiders earlier in the season, beating the team 4-1.
“When we beat Texas Tech, the match was really, really close,” Redlicki said. “The scoreboard said 4-1 so you wouldn’t think that the match was that close, but really it was.”
It was a tight contest as four of the six singles matches went to three sets. Sophomore Mackenzie McDonald was the only Bruin to win his match that day in straight sets.
With almost two full weeks of practice to prepare since the end of the Pac-12 championship, the Bruins said they feel fresh and prepared for this weekend.
“Practices have been getting pretty intense. This is important to us,” McDonald said. “Making it to Waco, (Texas), is our goal.”
If the team advances past the first two rounds, UCLA will travel to Waco where the final rounds of the tournament will be played. The likely third-round opponent will be No. 1 seed Oklahoma. Texas Tech was one of the only two teams to beat Oklahoma this year.
“Texas Tech beat (Oklahoma), so if we can beat Texas Tech then we obviously have a chance,” Martin said. “I’m not saying we have a great chance, but certainly all the pressure would be on them.”
The Bruins are in the heart of the postseason, and a loss this weekend will end their hopes of going to Waco.
“I told the team, hopefully our best tennis is to come,” Martin said.