32nd-Ranked UCSB Men’s Tennis Blanks UC Riverside for 16th Win

With five matches still to play, the 32nd-ranked UCSB men’s tennis team has equaled their regular-season win total from last season Tuesday, cruising past UC Riverside, 4-0, to collect their 16th victory of the year. 

The Gauchos are one of three teams tied for first place in The Big West standings with 2-0 conference records. They will play one of those other two teams, UC Davis, on Saturday.

UCSB was in control from the start, with Pablo Masjuan and Luka Mrsic racing out to an early 5-0 lead on court one in doubles, with Kai Brady and Alexander Watanabe Eriksson doing the same on court three. Both pairings would convert those leads into 6-1 wins, clinching doubles for the Gauchos.

In singles, Masjuan kept right on rolling, winning on court one, only dropping a single game. Lucca Liu finished up on court three shortly after, also taking his match by a 6-0, 6-1 scoreline. With UCSB up 3-0, the only question was which Gaucho would clinch the match, as Watanabe Eriksson and Conrad Brown were both nearing victories. It would be Watanabe Eriksson to finish off the Highlanders, wrapping up his match on court six in straight sets. Brown was one game away from finishing the job himself on court five, leading 5-4 in the second set when the match ended.

RESULTS

Doubles

1. Masjuan/Mrsic (UCSB) def. Lamy/Roth (UCR) 6-1

2. Brunkow/Liu (UCSB) vs. Velek/Sane (UCR) 2-4, unfinished

3. Brady/Watanabe Eriksson (UCSB) def. Djakouris/Huynh (UCR) 6-1

Singles

1. #117 Pablo Masjuan (UCSB) def. Daniel Velek (UCR) 6-0, 6-1

2. Gianluca Brunkow (UCSB) vs. Antreas Djakouris (UCR) 2-6, 3-2, unfinished

3. Lucca Liu (UCSB) def. Joshua Roth (UCR) 6-0, 6-1

4. Luka Mrsic (UCSB) vs. Justin Lamy (UCR) 6-3, 2-3, unfinished

5. Conrad Brown (UCSB) vs. Aarav Sane (UCR) 6-2, 5-4, unfinished

6. Alexander Watanabe Eriksson (UCSB) def. Ryan Huynh (UCR) 6-4, 6-2

The Gauchos will play their final non-conference match of the season next, as they take on Pacific in the first match of a two-match Northern California road trip on Friday. First serve from Stockton is set for 1 p.m.