UCLA
Georgia (Quarterfinals)
Bruins Unable to Weather Storm, Fall in Quarters
May 20, 2017 | Men's Tennis
ATHENS, Ga. โ The fifth-seeded UCLA men's tennis team fell to host and 13th-seeded Georgia Saturday at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex, 4-2. The teams endured a nearly-five-hour weather delay in the middle of singles play. The loss completes the team portion of the season for the Bruins, who end the campaign at 22-6.
Georgia fed off the energy of its fans to take the first game on each of the doubles courts. The Bruins quickly recovered, though, powering back to tie at one apiece on all three, capped by an overhead smash by Austin Rapp on Court 3. UCLA firmly grabbed momentum, as it went on to take a combined eight games in a row across the three courts until the top-ranked duo of Jan Zielinski and Robert Loeb was able to snap the Bruin run.
No. 3 Redlicki-Zhu was able to force deuce trailing 4-3 on Court 1, but Zhu's return hit the net and Georgia'sโand the nation'sโtop doubles team took a commanding lead at 5-3. The Bruin pair put up a fight in the final game, but the Bulldogs proved too tough and took the first decision of the day.
The first doubles loss seemed to fuel the Bruins on Courts 2 and 3, as Rapp-Joseph Di Giulio and Maxime Cressy-Ben Goldberg jumped out to 5-3 leads. The Georgia pair of Wayne Montgomery and Walker Duncan would take the next game on Court 3, but that would be the end of the Bulldog rally. Di Giulio watched a shot hit the net on Court 2 to give the Bruins a 6-3 win to tie, while Goldberg watched one go wide soon thereafter on Court 3 to clinch the doubles point.
Four of six Bulldogs held serve to take opening games in singles play, and Montgomery and Duncan leapt out to 3-0 leads on Courts 2 and 5, respectively. Rapp countered, but Duncan grabbed the first set on Court 5, 6-3, while Montgomery did the same on Court 2. On the top court, No. 60 Redlicki took his first set against No. 56 Ponwith, 6-4, while Cressy continued his early-tourney success with a 6-3 first set over Zielinski on Court 4.
No. 59 Reinberg forced a tiebreak on Court 3 for the Bulldogs, while Di Giulio did the same for the Bruins on Court 6. Simultaneously, Loeb dropped Di Giulio on Court 6, while Staggs took care of his first set against Reinberg on Court 3. Each side took three first sets.
Redlicki and Cressy were forced to third sets by Ponwith and Zielinski, as Georgia slowly crept into the driver's seat on the humid Georgia afternoon into evening. With Duncan on match point, however, lightning sent both teams to shelter for a mandated 30 minutes. During the half-hour delay, lightning maintained and the conditions evolved to include rain and thunder. By the time the teams returned to the dried courts, nearly five hours had passed and two Bruins were on the brink of elimination.
On Court 2, Montgomery quickly completed his straight-set defeat of Zhu, 6-3, 6-4. Rapp forced a tiebreak against Duncan, who went into the delay on match point. The Bulldog sophomore blitzed his way to a tiebreak win and a 6-3, 7-6 (2) decision on Court 5 to give Georgia and its returning fans a 2-1 lead. Loeb then rode his first-set tiebreak to a win over Di Giulio on Court 6 to take a 3-1 lead.
Redlicki, who will remain in Athens to participate in both the NCAA Division I singles and doubles (with Zhu) championships, dispatched Ponwith on Court 1 to cut into the Bruins' deficit. The UCLA junior moved to 29-8 on the campaign (22-4 on the dual-match season).
"I think today I came out and was making a lot more first serves which was crucial for me in getting that first set and then rolling into the third," Redlicki said. "I had a little bit of a lapse in the second but was able to pick it up."
Cressy, who had won seven-of-eight matches and four in a row, went into the delay with a fresh third set against Zielinski. The Bulldogs' Polish sophomore did not miss a beat following the break, however, as he sent the Bruins home with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 decision on Court 4.
"Great college match, I thought we played very well," Martin said after the match. "It was still a great year for the Bruins, in my opinion."
Tennis Match Results
Georgia vs UCLA
May 20, 2017 at Athens, GA
(Dan Magill Tennis Complex)
#13 Georgia 4, #5 UCLA 2
Doubles competition
1. #1 Zielinski/Loeb (UGA) def. #3 Redlicki/Zhu (UCLA) 6-3
2. A. Rapp/Di Giulio (UCLA) def. Reinberg/Ponwith (UGA) 6-3
3. Cressy/Goldberg (UCLA) def. Montgomery/Duncan (UGA) 6-4
Singles competition
1. #60 Martin Redlicki (UCLA) vs. #56 Nathan Ponwith (UGA) 6-4, 1-6, 6-2
2. #33 Wayne Montgomery (UGA) def. Evan Zhu (UCLA) 6-3, 6-4
3. Logan Staggs (UCLA) vs. #59 Emil Reinberg (UGA) 7-6 (3), 5-6, unfinished
4. Jan Zielinski (UGA) def. Maxime Cressy (UCLA) 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
5. Walker Duncan (UGA) def. Austin Rapp (UCLA) 6-2, 7-6 (2)
6. Robert Loeb (UGA) def. Joseph Di Giulio (UCLA) 7-6 (4), 6-2
Match Notes:
Georgia 22-7; National ranking #12
UCLA 22-6; National ranking #5
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (2,5,6,1,4)
Players Mentioned
