This afternoon, the No. 4 UCLA men’s tennis team will face
its first true test of the 2007 season, a match against Pac-10
rival No.18 California.
The last time Cal traveled to Westwood, the Bruins (3-0)
narrowly escaped with a 4-3 win that came down to the wire, but
this time, UCLA hopes to clinch the match much faster.
“Those type of matches, when you win them, it really gives
you a lot of confidence and if you lose them, it really takes a lot
of fire out of you,” UCLA coach Billy Martin said of last
season’s home triumph.
This time around, however, the match will not count toward
Pac-10 standings, as it is just the first meeting between the two
conference teams.
However, Martin and his Bruins are well aware that the outcome
of this afternoon’s match, along with Saturday’s match
against No. 19 Stanford, has several implications.
With impressive victories, UCLA can solidify its No. 4 seed, see
where it stands compared to fellow conference schools, potentially
provide two key matches in determining whether it will host NCAA
Regionals, and earn a high seed for the USTA/ITA National Team
Indoors in mid-February.
But most important for the Bruins is to have the upper hand in
two significant conference rivalries.
“Cal and Stanford being two of our big rivals, we just
don’t want to lose,” Martin said. “Once we start
to get some Pac-10 flavor, it’s always fun.”
The Bears will be coming to UCLA to attempt to topple a
higher-ranked Bruin squad, but senior Philipp Gruendler thinks the
individual matchups throughout the singles lineup are more
important than the team ranking.
“It’s not about the rankings, it’s about the
matchups,” he said. “Up and down we have a very solid
team and we’re very confident going into this
match.”
Either way, Cal and Stanford will both be competing to prove
their worthiness against a superior team with great depth,
providing for a tough task.
The Bruins are ready for whatever the Bears or Cardinal throw at
them, knowing they are the most sought-after program in the
Pac-10.
“We’re No. 4 in the country so that means
they’re coming here to beat us and we expect that,”
junior Mathieu Dehaine said. “Hopefully we’ll be able
to get some good wins this weekend.”
INJURY UPDATE: Senior Chris Surapol expects to
play in both singles and doubles action this weekend against Cal
and Stanford.
Last season, it was Surapol who clinched a 4-3 win over Cal at
home in a grueling match at the No. 4 singles position.
The captain was limited to doubles for the first two dual
matches of the 2007 season and singles for the third due to an
injured right shoulder.
“It’s been great all week,” Surapol said of
his shoulder. “No problems, no inflammation, no pain,
nothing.”
EARLIER MATCH CANCELLED: The Bruins were
scheduled to play No. 50 San Diego State on Tuesday, but due to
rainy weather, the match was cancelled. Both teams are still
looking to see whether the match will be replayed later in the
season.