Thursday, 4/24/97 Bruins kick back as Pac-10 championship draws
near Rematch with Stanford must wait until NCAA tournament
By Mark Shapiro Daily Bruin Staff It’s going to be a few weeks
before the UCLA men’s tennis team will get a chance to redeem
itself in dual match play after its loss to Stanford over the
weekend. In the meantime, the top-ranked Bruins (23-2, 9-1) head to
the Ojai desert this weekend for the Pac-10 championships, with
first-round action beginning today. There will be no showdown with
Stanford or battle with USC since the tournament only features a
singles and doubles draw, with no team competition. With so little
riding on the results, a decidedly relaxed approach has been
adopted. "I’ve never really felt it’s all that important," UCLA
head coach Billy Martin said. "There’s too much time (before the
NCAA championships). Even if you play great, there’s too much time.
It’s not all that crucial to do well." Four Bruins will be featured
in the main singles draw, with senior Eric Taino heading the pack.
Taino, who is ranked ninth in the nation, holds the highest ranking
of any tournament participant, although 11th-ranked Paul Goldstein
and 12th-ranked Ryan Wolters, both of Stanford, are scheduled to
participate. Joining Taino in the draw will be juniors Alex Decret
and Matt Breen, as well as freshman Kevin Kim. The tournament is a
particularly good opportunity for Breen, who is looking to play his
way into the NCAA singles championships. Taino, Decret and Kim are
fairly secure selections. The Bruins will also have two entrants in
the main doubles draw, headlined by the team of Kim and Eric Lin,
which is ranked third in the country. The duo of Taino and Decret
will join them. Four more Bruins are scheduled to participate in
the second flight singles draw. Seniors Lin and Jason Thompson and
sophomores Brandon Kramer and Darren Miller will join the fray,
with the weekend marking Miller’s first action of the year.
Meanwhile singles players Vincent Allegre and Jason Cook will both
miss the tournament due to injury. In the second flight doubles
draw, the teams of Breen and Thompson and Kramer and Miller will
represent UCLA. * * * It’s been almost a week since the Bruins’
22-match winning streak crumbled under the weight of the Stanford
Cardinal, but UCLA is already thirsting for a rematch. With the
season series split at one victory apiece, the next time the two
teams could face each other would be deep into the NCAA
championships. "I was hoping we could win, I thought we had a good
chance," Martin said. "It’s not a happy thing, but I’m not overly
concerned. I hope that it makes us mad. It should show us that
we’re right there, neck and neck. If anything it should be
encouraging." In the match of the year, one advantage the Cardinal
had was their rabid fan base. With an expanded stadium, the effects
of the raucous group was amplified over the weekend. "If it was bad
before, it’s worse now," Martin said. "It’s a tough place to play
because the crowd is so biased." Eric Taino is the highest-ranked
player at this week’s Pac-10 Invitational.