Ask anyone associated with the UCLA men’s tennis team if
they’re happy to be 15-2 at this point in the season, and
you’ll get a conflicted answer.
Sure, 15 wins against two losses is an impressive record, but
it’s the manner in which one of those losses happened that is
so frustrating.
“I’m happy to be 15-2,” UCLA coach Billy
Martin said. “To me, I still don’t think we should have
lost that match to ‘SC. The thought of it really irks me. Not
just because we lost, but how we lost. I felt that we were in such
control.”
Martin felt that way because the position they were in was to
win. In that March 1 match at USC, the Bruins won the doubles point
and the first set in four of six singles matches. Then it all came
crashing down, as the Trojans seized control and sprung the upset,
5-2.
“Obviously that ‘SC loss was really bad,” said
sophomore Benjamin Kohlloeffel, who has been the most consistent
player for the No. 7 Bruins this season.
That loss really is the theme for UCLA at this point in the
season, with its only other loss coming to No. 2 Virginia in the
quarterfinals of the National Team Indoors. In the team’s 15
wins, the Bruins have only really been challenged once, a 4-3
victory over Stanford at home. The team’s last match was a
7-0 drubbing of Virginia Commonwealth last Wednesday that saw the
14th-ranked Kohlloeffel register a 6-0, 6-2 win over Arnaud
Lecloerec, ranked No. 13 in the country.
Any discussion of UCLA men’s tennis, however, comes down
to the USC match and the belief that it won’t happen
again.
“In some ways I hope it motivated us, and we’re
going to get better because of it,” Martin said. “If
anything, we’re really looking forward to another chance at
them.”
That chance will come on April 15, when the Trojans visit the
Los Angeles Tennis Center. It’s a date that sophomore Philipp
Gruendler has circled in his mind.
“I think there’s extra motivation, especially when
they come here,” he said.
In the meantime, everyone on the team will simply be trying to
get better, addressing individual weaknesses to help forge a better
collective unit.
“Everyone knows what they have to work on, so we should be
fine,” said Gruendler, who readily admits that he
hasn’t been as effective this year as he was last season.
The ultimate goal, then, is to have everyone playing his best
tennis when the NCAA Tournament arrives in mid-May.
“At the NCAAs, you really have to be at your peak, because
you can lose to anybody,” Kohlloeffel said.
After finals, the Bruins host the Arizona schools, followed by
Washington and Oregon the next week, and then they will head up to
the Bay Area.
The team finishes its conference schedule with a match that
everyone has been eagerly awaiting since March 1.
“That keeps motivating us, making us want to get tougher
and better,” Martin said. “I won’t feel really
good until we play them here and hopefully get a
victory.”