The loudest cheers at the Los Angeles Tennis Center on Thursday
came well after the Bruins had already lost.
While Tobias Clemens was in the middle of an upset win over the
No. 1-ranked singles player in the country, Baylor’s Benedict
Dorsch, No. 3 Baylor (8-1) won enough singles matches to clinch a
5-2 victory.
Still, No.5-ranked Clemens continued to battle en route to his
2-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory.
“The first set was a surprise,” Clemens said.
“I’m not used to playing against someone that
great.”
Dorsch overpowered Clemens in the first set, especially when
holding his serve. Clemens never had a good chance to break his
German countryman.
Even Clemens’ break was a surprise. Down 3-2 and 40-15, it
appeared Dorsch would again hold his serve.
A couple of hard-fought rallies later, Clemens had forced deuce.
Two points later, the Bruin senior won the game and was well on his
way to victory.
“It was an awesome match,” Clemens said. “Both
players gave it everything they had. It was a great finish. We both
used good sportsmanship, and the crowd was unbelievable.”
Clemens and Dorsch put on a show for the crowd, both hustling
and showing a lot of emotion.
Clemens yelled at himself a few times and on one play hustled to
the point where he fell and rolled around on the court.
The crowd cheered loudly for Clemens despite the disappointing
outcomes for No. 9 UCLA (9-3) on the other singles courts.
Still, the other five starters played well enough for Clemens
and UCLA coach Billy Martin to call it a “moral
victory.”
At the No. 4 position, UCLA’s Alberto Francis lost to No.
8-ranked Benjamin Becker, 7-5, 6-4.
When Francis was serving down 5-4 in the second set, he and
Becker had an epic game.
The two played to over a dozen deuces, and both had several
opportunities to win it. But Becker ultimately prevailed in the
match that clinched the win for Baylor.
The last game of Francis’ match took so long that four
games were played on other courts while Francis and Becker played
one.
“I had a lot of chances but just didn’t
execute,” Francis said.
Both players had streaks where they lost three straight game
points.
Francis, unlike his coach and teammate, did not take a moral
victory from the match.
“I’ve been playing well lately,” Francis said.
“I know (Becker) is a great player, but I am still
disappointed I didn’t win.”
Francis had an early lead in the first set, but just like in the
second, he ended up losing the set while serving in a long
game.
The other win for the Bruins came at No. 5 singles. Philipp
Gruendler beat Baylor’s Ivor Lovrak 6-2, 6-1 in the first
completed singles match. Gruendler never really was challenged by
Lovrak and was in control the whole match.
“I played well and did what I had to do,” Gruendler
said. “I played to his weak point, and I played great. I
can’t wait to play my next match.”
At No. 2 singles, UCLA’s Kris Kwinta lost to Matias Marin,
7-6 (5), 5-7, (10-7). At No. 3 singles, Bruin Chris Lam lost to
Matija Zgaga, 6-3, 6-4. And at No. 6 singles, Baylor’s Reiner
Neurohr beat Chris Surapol, 6-2, 6-2.
At the beginning of the match, UCLA squandered a golden
opportunity to win the doubles point.
Each team already had won one doubles match, and both teams were
looking for that last victory to secure the point. At No. 2,
Clemens and Lam beat Neurohr and Zgaga, 8-4. Francis and Kwinta
lost to Dorsch and Lovrak.
Gruendler and Surapol were tied 7-7 with Becker and Marin before
dropping the final two games, effectively securing the one point to
Baylor.