The UC Santa Barbara men’s tennis team made history Sunday afternoon, beating the No. 28 Cal Golden Bears for the first time ever, 4-3, at the Arnhold Tennis Center.
Kai Brady‘s three-set triumph on court six clinched the match for the Gauchos, who improved their record to 15-1 on the season and stretching their winning streak to six and extending their unbeaten streak at home to 18 matches.
“I can’t say enough about this team’s resiliency and ability to continue to push forward through the tough moments,” said coach Blake Muller. “This was a total team win and it was great to have the support of so many community members during the match.”
The Gauchos came out strong in doubles play, taking 6-4 wins on the top two courts. Phillip Jordan and Kai Brady, the 57-ranked duo in the country, got the job done on court one. Pablo Masjuan and Luka Mrsic took down Lucas Magnaudet/Ryder Jackson, the nation’s No. 64 partnership on court two. Lucca Liu and Gianluca Brunkow led, 5-3, on court three when UCSB clinched the doubles point.
Cal was quick to tie the match in singles play, with No. 46 player Yuta Kikuchi taking a win on court one, 6-3, 6-3 over Jordan.
In a healthy dose of drama, the other five singles matches each went to three sets. Masjuan was the first Gaucho to win in singles, putting the home team back in the lead with a 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 victory on court two over Ryder Jackson.
Mrsic extended the lead on court five, bouncing back from a close first-set loss and beating Siddhant Banthia 5-7, 6-1, 6-3.
The Bears scored wins on courts three and four to even the team score, 3-3.
On court six, Brady took a close first set against Lucas Magnaudet, 7-5, then dropped the second 3-6. He controlled the deciding set, winning it 6-1 to clinch the historic victory.