Winning the Pac-10 Championship for the sixth consecutive year must have felt good for the No. 9 UCLA men’s tennis team.
But beating the No. 7 USC Trojans to claim the title must have felt even better.
That is exactly what happened Friday at the Los Angeles Tennis Center, as the Bruins (17-4, 6-0 Pac-10) not only captured the 2009 Pac-10 Championship with a 5-2 win over the Trojans (19-5, 5-1) but also stretched their current win streak to 10 matches and their win streak in the rivalry series to six.
Prior to the encounter, UCLA coach Billy Martin said the team that could best handle the pressure of the match would emerge victorious. Afterward, he stuck by his claim and said he believed his team proved to be better-equipped to handle that pressure and USC seemed a little jittery from the outset.
“Of the two teams, I really feel we did a little bit better job dealing with the pressure, especially in the doubles,” Martin said. “Their freshman in doubles looked a little shaky, and I’ve seen that so many times when you’ve never been in this position. Overall, (USC) didn’t look real sharp in doubles for whatever reason.”
One of the possible factors that played into the Trojans’ shaky play could have been the presence of a raucous UCLA crowd that made its presence felt throughout the match’s entirety.
“I think the crowd jazzed up our guys,” Martin said. “It was definitely pro-UCLA, even though there were some USC fans. But I think the crowd definitely helped us. There was energy in the air. I pick maybe two matches a year where I bug people to get out here, but it’s not hard when we’re playing USC.
“And we’re also undefeated when the UCLA band comes out, so those guys are my heroes.”
From the opening gate, the Bruins came out with the hot start they needed, winning two of the three doubles matches and capturing the doubles point, which was crucial to their victory over USC earlier in the year.
But the key in the match was the play of junior Haythem Abid, who has been battling an ankle injury as of late.
“(Abid) has really been injured,” Martin said. “I haven’t wanted to talk about it, but he’s only about 75 percent at best. His ankle has been really swollen, so as far as a badge of courage, I would say he got it today.”
As a change of pace in the Bruins’ lineup, Abid, who usually plays at the No. 1 spot, instead played at the No. 2 slot against USC sophomore Jaak Poldma. After losing the first set 4-6 Abid fought back to capture the second set, 6-4.
Poldma then looked to have the tie-breaking third set sealed up, as he jumped out to a 4-1 lead and the Trojans were threatening to mount a comeback.
At the time, UCLA was leading the team score 3-1, but the final three matches were all in the third set, and USC had a chance to win in each.
But Abid, with some spectacular play, was able to climb back into the third set to eventually win it, 6-4, clinching the Pac-10 title for UCLA.
After the match, Martin continued to sing Abid’s praises.
“Abid coming back was incredible,” Martin said. “He is by far our best player. There is no doubt about it.”
The Pac-10 Championship also clinches the Bruins an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament, which is the first step to the ultimate goal of the season for Martin and his team.
“Winning the Pac-10 is something we’re all really proud of, but this is UCLA,” Martin said. “Honestly, our year isn’t set to win Pac-10 Championships. It’s one of our goals, but NCAA Championships is our major goal. If we don’t win the NCAA Championship, it will still feel like we’ve underachieved.”
Martin’s players also see the Pac-10 Championship as a stepping stone to a much greater goal.
“It feels really good, like we’ve accomplished something,” sophomore Holden Seguso said. “It’s a confidence booster for the NCAA Championships, and it brings us closer together.”
But it was not just the fact that they won the Pac-10 Championship that has the Bruins feeling good about themselves.
“The best part is we beat USC,” Seguso said. “It’s a completely different match when we play them. There’s a lot more emotion involved, and when you beat (USC) it really feels three times as good as beating anyone else.”