UCLA
Oregon
Staggs Clinches 4-3 Victory Over No. 23 Ducks
April 01, 2017 | Men's Tennis
LOS ANGELES - The No. 10 UCLA men's tennis team was pushed to the limit against No. 23ย Oregon on Saturday, eventually notching a thrilling 4-3 victory over the Ducks at the Sunset Canyon Tennis Courts. With the win, UCLA moves to 13-4 overall and 2-0 in the Pac-12. Oregon, which also lost to USC on Friday, sees its record fall to 14-4 and 0-2 in conference action.
With the dual match tied at 3-3, the contest hinged on the outcome at court No. 4, where Bruin junior Logan Staggs and Oregon senior Jason Amos were in a tight three-set battle. In the seventh game of the set, Staggs broke Amos for a 4-3 lead, subsequently holding for a 5-3 advantage. Although Amos took care of his own serve to make it 5-4, Staggs remained steady, serving out the match as his teammates stormed the court in celebration.
"It was a great college match," said UCLA head coach Billy Martin. "We knew Oregon was a good team. They were a good team last year too. They have improved even more this year. We were lucky to get out of it today. Being at home was maybe the godsend for us."
Saturday's victory was the second big win for Staggs this year, as he also clinched UCLA's 4-2 decision over Stanford back in February in another three-setter.
"He's really proving that he's one of our go-to guys," added Martin on Staggs' performance. "If I had to pick a guy on this team to be in that situation, he's definitely someone I want."
Although it was extremely close at the end, UCLA actually owned a 3-0 lead in Saturday's match. The Bruins took the doubles point and then got two quick wins in singles play following straight-set victories from Austin Rapp (court No. 5) and Martin Redlicki (court No. 2).
With their backs against the wall, the Ducks responded. Three-set wins by Akihiro Tanaka (court No. 3) and Ty Gentry (court No. 6) quickly made the score 3-2. In addition, Oregon's No. 1 singles player, No. 40 Thomas Laurent, moved out to a quick 3-0 third-set lead at the top singles position over No. 11 Gage Brymer. Laurent would drop just one game in the set, posting a 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-1 upset over the Bruin senior.
Although Laurent's victory tied the match at 3-3, Staggs didn't give the Ducks much to celebrate, as he broke Amos almost immediately in that crucial seventh game to swing the momentum back in UCLA's favor.
#10 UCLA 4, #23 Oregon 3Apr 01, 2017 at Los Angeles, CA (Sunset Canyon Tennis Courts)
| Doublesย |
| 1. #15 Redlicki/Zhu (UCLA) def. Armando Soemarno/Amos (UO) 6-4 |
| 2. Brymer/A. Rapp (UCLA) def. Laurent/Clissold (UO) 6-3 |
| 3. Ben Goldberg/Cressy (UCLA) vs. Stevens/Tanaka (UO) 5-4, unfinished |
| Singles |
| 1. #40 Thomas Laurent (UO) def. #11 Gage Brymer (UCLA) 7-6 (7-3), 3-6, 6-1 |
| 2. #39 Martin Redlicki (UCLA) def. Simon Stevens (UO) 6-1, 7-5 |
| 3. Akihiro Tanaka (UO) def. Evan Zhu (UCLA) 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 |
| 4. Logan Staggs (UCLA) def. Jayson Amos (UO) 7-6 (7-3), 6-7 (5-7), 6-4 |
| 5. Austin Rapp (UCLA) def. Cormac Clissold (UO) 6-1, 6-3 |
| 6. Ty Gentry (UO) def. Maxime Cressy (UCLA) 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 |
| Match Notes |
| Oregon 14-4; National ranking #23 |
| UCLA 13-4; National ranking #10 |
| Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (5,2,3,6,1,4) |
Players Mentioned
