Saturday, January 25
Boston, Mass.
11:00 AM
UCLA
vs
Texas A&M
Emon van Loben Sels
Photo by: Hritika Chaturvedi
No. 21 Men's Tennis Set for Kickoff Weekend in Boston
January 23, 2025 | Men's Tennis
The 21st-ranked UCLA men's tennis team is traveling to Boston this week for ITA Kickoff Weekend, with Harvard hosting the regional. Matches will be played at Murr Center, with the Bruins (1-1) getting started Saturday against No. 13 Texas A&M (1-0). First serve is set for 11 a.m. PT. No. 23 Harvard (1-1) hosts Georgia (2-0) in the day's opener. The winning teams then meet Sunday at 11 a.m., with the consolation match taking place at 7 a.m. PT.
FOLLOW LIVE
Harvard provides live streaming of matches played at Murr Center HERE, as well as real-time results HERE. Cracked Racquets is also covering ITA Kickoff Weekend on its CrossCourt Cast. Saturday's contests will be available HERE, while Sunday's can be found HERE.
Fans unable to attend home UCLA men's tennis matches can still follow live. Point-by-point scoring and streaming will be available for all matches played at Los Angeles Tennis Center HERE.
Additionally, in-match updates for home and road contests can be found on the UCLA men's tennis X account.
PAST MATCHUPS
Series vs. Texas A&M: UCLA leads 7-3
Most Recent vs. Texas A&M: Texas A&M won 4-0 on Jan. 29, 2022 in College Station, Texas (Recap)
Series vs. Georgia: Georgia leads 14-9
Most Recent vs. Georgia: Georgia won 4-2 on May 20, 2017 in Athens, Ga. (Recap)
Series vs. Harvard: UCLA leads 10-1
Most Recent vs. Harvard: UCLA won 4-3 on March 17, 2024 in Los Angeles (Recap)
LAST TIME OUT
The Bruins went 1-1 in the first week of their dual-match season. At UC Irvine (Jan. 17), UCLA overcame an early deficit to beat the Anteaters 4-1. The Bruins were topped in doubles play, but responded by taking five of six singles first sets. Alexander Hoogmartens, Spencer Johnson, Rudy Quan and clincher Aadarsh Tripathi accounted for UCLA's points. Then, in a top-20 matchup, the Bruins fell 4-3 in their home opener against San Diego Monday. UCLA claimed the doubles point in thrilling fashion and added singles victories by Quan and Tripathi, but could not secure a fourth point. The Toreros bounced back in singles play and capped their turnaround with the clinching win by Stian Klaassen.
QUAN NAMED BIG TEN FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
Rudy Quan was named Big Ten Conference Men's Tennis Freshman of the Week for Jan. 15-21, it was announced Wednesday. The award is Quan's first and comes on the heels of his initial two dual matches. He won his first two singles contests and added a clinching doubles victory. At UC Irvine, Quan bounced back from a doubles loss to take down reigning Big West Freshman of the Year Andy Nguyen in a 6-4, 6-3 decision on Court 2 that extended UCLA's lead to 3-1 and gave the Thousand Oaks, Calif. native his first dual-match win. With all eyes on Court 3 in the Bruins' home opener, Quan and fellow freshman Kaylan Bigun outlasted 72nd-ranked Toreros Adrien Berrut and Blake Kasday for a 7-6(2) result. Quan dropped his first three singles games against Iiro Vasa on Court 2, but rebounded for a 6-3, 7-6(5) victory that gave his team a 3-2 lead.
FALL RECAP
Bruins competed at six fall tournaments, concluding with the first-ever fall NCAA individual championships. There was a UCLA sweep at the ITA Southwest Regional Championships in Tempe, Ariz., where Spencer Johnson collected the singles title and Alexander Hoogmartens/Aadarsh Tripathi walked away with the doubles crown. Emon van Loben Sels reached the singles semifinals at Kiwanis Tennis Center. Each of those standout performances was rewarded with a ticket to NCAAs in Waco, Texas. Johnson won three matches there, reaching the quarterfinal round. Hoogmartens/Tripathi also had a quarterfinal run. Those showings garnered each All-America recognition. A singles win was also picked up by van Loben Sels. Johnson (10-2) and van Loben Sels (10-5) tied for the team lead with 10 singles victories during the fall, while Hoogmartens/Tripathi went a perfect 7-0 before the pair was unable to go in its finale.
IN THE RANKINGS
Team: No. 21 UCLA
Singles: No. 13 Spencer Johnson*, No. 50 Rudy Quan*, No. 82 Emon van Loben Sels*, No. 93 Aadarsh Tripathi*
Doubles: No. 10 Alexander Hoogmartens*/Aadarsh Tripathi*
* - career high
AWARD WATCH
Johnson Earns Spot on Big Ten Men's Tennis Player to Watch List โ Jan. 10
Johnson Named Big Ten Player of the Week After Championship Run โ Oct. 23, 2024
2023-24 IN REVIEW
UCLA registered a 15-8 overall record and finished No. 22 in the final ITA team rankings of 2024. The Bruins beat LSU in the NCAA Championships opening round before falling to second-seeded Texas. A seven-match winning streak from March 29-April 21 included a 4-3 victory against 19th-ranked Stanford and a pair of decisions over crosstown rival USC. Individually, Spencer Johnson was named the Pac-12 Freshman/Newcomer of the Year and a first-team honoree by the conference. He logged team highs of 23 singles wins and 21 doubles victories. Govind Nanda, also an All-Pac-12 First Team pick, was tabbed the ITA Southwest Region's Senior Player of the Year. He also qualified for the NCAA singles tournament. Alexander Hoogmartens made the conference second team.
WHO'S BACK?
UCLA returns All-Pac-12 performers Alexander Hoogmartens (second team) and Spencer Johnson (first team) from the 2023-24 roster. Johnson was also the conference's Freshman/Newcomer of the Year. In addition to Hoogmartens (seven) and Johnson (14), Gianluca Ballotta (six), Giacomo Revelli (six), Emon van Loben Sels (three) and Aadarsh Tripathi (four) logged dual-match singles wins in 2024. Hoogmartens (12), Johnson (13) and van Loben Sels (12) were double-digit winners on the doubles side in dual-match play.
WHO'S NEW?
UCLA has five freshmen on its roster in 2025: Kaylan Bigun (Los Angeles, Calif./Bridgeway Academy), Cassius Chinlund (Los Angeles, Calif./ICL Academy), Andrei Crabel (Beverly Hills, Calif./Bridgeway Academy), Rudy Quan (Thousand Oaks, Calif./Century Academy) and Leo von Bismarck (Hamburg, Germany/Eliteschule des Sports Alter Teichweg). Bigun in 2024 claimed the French Open boys' singles title and climbed to No. 1 in the ITF junior rankings. Chinlund, who made it to No. 1 in the USTA junior singles rankings, won the Boys' 18 singles crown at the 2023 Easter Bowl. Crabel is a veteran of ITF events and paired with teammate Spencer Johnson at two Lakewood, CA events. Quan rose to No. 2 in his class according to the Tennis Recruiting Network and lifted the Boys' 18 singles trophy at the 2024 FILA International Junior Championships. Another frequent ITF competitor, von Bismarck picked up singles wins at the Hilversum and Hamburg events in 2023 and made a doubles semifinal round at Fleesensee in 2022.
BRUINS ON TOUR
Former UCLA standouts continue to become household names in the professional ranks, with Maxime Cressy, Marcos Giron, Mackenzie McDonald and Jean-Julien Rojer turning in notable results across the Grand Slams and on the ATP Tour in recent years. Cressy picked up his first ATP Tour championship and saw his singles ranking reach a career-best No. 31 when he beat Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan at the 2022 Hall of Fame Open in Newport, R.I. An ATP doubles title followed for Cressy in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where he teamed with Fabrice Martin to take the 2023 Dubai Open's top prize. Giron rose to a career-high spot of No. 37 on the singles list when he claimed his first ATP crown by knocking off fellow American Alex Michelsen at the 2024 Hall of Fame Open. Giron recently made the 2025 Australian Open singles third round and reached the Roland-Garros singles third round for the second time in 2023. His 2023 also included top-10 wins against Holger Rune of Denmark and Casper Ruud of Norway. McDonald, who opened 2023 by beating top seed and defending champion Rafael Nadal in three sets at the Australian Open, represented the United States at the Davis Cup Finals in Uzbekistan and achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 37 the same year. Rojer collected his fourth Grand Slam title at Roland-Garros in 2022, teaming with Marcelo Arevalo to defeat Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek in the final. Rojer won three ATP championships with Arevalo in 2023 and another alongside Lloyd Glasspool in 2024.
MARTIN MILESTONES
Head coach Billy Martin is in his 32nd year at the helm of the UCLA men's tennis program and this season marks his 42nd since joining the staff of friend, mentor and fellow UCLA Athletic Hall of Famer Glenn Bassett. Martin, who passed Bassett to became the program's all-time leader in head-coaching wins during the 2019 season, is the longest-tenured active coach at UCLA. He holds a career record of 658-167 (.798) as head coach. Martin guided the 2005 Bruins to the program's 16th NCAA team title and 23 of his squads have finished in the top five at the season-ending NCAA Championships. Benjamin Kohlloeffel (2006), Marcos Giron (2014) and Mackenzie McDonald (2016) have earned NCAA singles titles on Martin's watch, while UCLA has become a frequent landing spot for doubles champions of late. In addition to 1996 winners Justin Gimelstob and Srdjan Muskatirovic, three of the most recent seven titleholders โ McDonald/Martin Redlicki in 2016, Redlicki/Evan Zhu in 2018 and Maxime Cressy/Keegan Smith in 2019 โ have called Westwood home.
FOLLOW LIVE
Harvard provides live streaming of matches played at Murr Center HERE, as well as real-time results HERE. Cracked Racquets is also covering ITA Kickoff Weekend on its CrossCourt Cast. Saturday's contests will be available HERE, while Sunday's can be found HERE.
Fans unable to attend home UCLA men's tennis matches can still follow live. Point-by-point scoring and streaming will be available for all matches played at Los Angeles Tennis Center HERE.
Additionally, in-match updates for home and road contests can be found on the UCLA men's tennis X account.
PAST MATCHUPS
Series vs. Texas A&M: UCLA leads 7-3
Most Recent vs. Texas A&M: Texas A&M won 4-0 on Jan. 29, 2022 in College Station, Texas (Recap)
Series vs. Georgia: Georgia leads 14-9
Most Recent vs. Georgia: Georgia won 4-2 on May 20, 2017 in Athens, Ga. (Recap)
Series vs. Harvard: UCLA leads 10-1
Most Recent vs. Harvard: UCLA won 4-3 on March 17, 2024 in Los Angeles (Recap)
LAST TIME OUT
The Bruins went 1-1 in the first week of their dual-match season. At UC Irvine (Jan. 17), UCLA overcame an early deficit to beat the Anteaters 4-1. The Bruins were topped in doubles play, but responded by taking five of six singles first sets. Alexander Hoogmartens, Spencer Johnson, Rudy Quan and clincher Aadarsh Tripathi accounted for UCLA's points. Then, in a top-20 matchup, the Bruins fell 4-3 in their home opener against San Diego Monday. UCLA claimed the doubles point in thrilling fashion and added singles victories by Quan and Tripathi, but could not secure a fourth point. The Toreros bounced back in singles play and capped their turnaround with the clinching win by Stian Klaassen.
QUAN NAMED BIG TEN FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
Rudy Quan was named Big Ten Conference Men's Tennis Freshman of the Week for Jan. 15-21, it was announced Wednesday. The award is Quan's first and comes on the heels of his initial two dual matches. He won his first two singles contests and added a clinching doubles victory. At UC Irvine, Quan bounced back from a doubles loss to take down reigning Big West Freshman of the Year Andy Nguyen in a 6-4, 6-3 decision on Court 2 that extended UCLA's lead to 3-1 and gave the Thousand Oaks, Calif. native his first dual-match win. With all eyes on Court 3 in the Bruins' home opener, Quan and fellow freshman Kaylan Bigun outlasted 72nd-ranked Toreros Adrien Berrut and Blake Kasday for a 7-6(2) result. Quan dropped his first three singles games against Iiro Vasa on Court 2, but rebounded for a 6-3, 7-6(5) victory that gave his team a 3-2 lead.
FALL RECAP
Bruins competed at six fall tournaments, concluding with the first-ever fall NCAA individual championships. There was a UCLA sweep at the ITA Southwest Regional Championships in Tempe, Ariz., where Spencer Johnson collected the singles title and Alexander Hoogmartens/Aadarsh Tripathi walked away with the doubles crown. Emon van Loben Sels reached the singles semifinals at Kiwanis Tennis Center. Each of those standout performances was rewarded with a ticket to NCAAs in Waco, Texas. Johnson won three matches there, reaching the quarterfinal round. Hoogmartens/Tripathi also had a quarterfinal run. Those showings garnered each All-America recognition. A singles win was also picked up by van Loben Sels. Johnson (10-2) and van Loben Sels (10-5) tied for the team lead with 10 singles victories during the fall, while Hoogmartens/Tripathi went a perfect 7-0 before the pair was unable to go in its finale.
IN THE RANKINGS
Team: No. 21 UCLA
Singles: No. 13 Spencer Johnson*, No. 50 Rudy Quan*, No. 82 Emon van Loben Sels*, No. 93 Aadarsh Tripathi*
Doubles: No. 10 Alexander Hoogmartens*/Aadarsh Tripathi*
* - career high
AWARD WATCH
Johnson Earns Spot on Big Ten Men's Tennis Player to Watch List โ Jan. 10
Johnson Named Big Ten Player of the Week After Championship Run โ Oct. 23, 2024
2023-24 IN REVIEW
UCLA registered a 15-8 overall record and finished No. 22 in the final ITA team rankings of 2024. The Bruins beat LSU in the NCAA Championships opening round before falling to second-seeded Texas. A seven-match winning streak from March 29-April 21 included a 4-3 victory against 19th-ranked Stanford and a pair of decisions over crosstown rival USC. Individually, Spencer Johnson was named the Pac-12 Freshman/Newcomer of the Year and a first-team honoree by the conference. He logged team highs of 23 singles wins and 21 doubles victories. Govind Nanda, also an All-Pac-12 First Team pick, was tabbed the ITA Southwest Region's Senior Player of the Year. He also qualified for the NCAA singles tournament. Alexander Hoogmartens made the conference second team.
WHO'S BACK?
UCLA returns All-Pac-12 performers Alexander Hoogmartens (second team) and Spencer Johnson (first team) from the 2023-24 roster. Johnson was also the conference's Freshman/Newcomer of the Year. In addition to Hoogmartens (seven) and Johnson (14), Gianluca Ballotta (six), Giacomo Revelli (six), Emon van Loben Sels (three) and Aadarsh Tripathi (four) logged dual-match singles wins in 2024. Hoogmartens (12), Johnson (13) and van Loben Sels (12) were double-digit winners on the doubles side in dual-match play.
WHO'S NEW?
UCLA has five freshmen on its roster in 2025: Kaylan Bigun (Los Angeles, Calif./Bridgeway Academy), Cassius Chinlund (Los Angeles, Calif./ICL Academy), Andrei Crabel (Beverly Hills, Calif./Bridgeway Academy), Rudy Quan (Thousand Oaks, Calif./Century Academy) and Leo von Bismarck (Hamburg, Germany/Eliteschule des Sports Alter Teichweg). Bigun in 2024 claimed the French Open boys' singles title and climbed to No. 1 in the ITF junior rankings. Chinlund, who made it to No. 1 in the USTA junior singles rankings, won the Boys' 18 singles crown at the 2023 Easter Bowl. Crabel is a veteran of ITF events and paired with teammate Spencer Johnson at two Lakewood, CA events. Quan rose to No. 2 in his class according to the Tennis Recruiting Network and lifted the Boys' 18 singles trophy at the 2024 FILA International Junior Championships. Another frequent ITF competitor, von Bismarck picked up singles wins at the Hilversum and Hamburg events in 2023 and made a doubles semifinal round at Fleesensee in 2022.
BRUINS ON TOUR
Former UCLA standouts continue to become household names in the professional ranks, with Maxime Cressy, Marcos Giron, Mackenzie McDonald and Jean-Julien Rojer turning in notable results across the Grand Slams and on the ATP Tour in recent years. Cressy picked up his first ATP Tour championship and saw his singles ranking reach a career-best No. 31 when he beat Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan at the 2022 Hall of Fame Open in Newport, R.I. An ATP doubles title followed for Cressy in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where he teamed with Fabrice Martin to take the 2023 Dubai Open's top prize. Giron rose to a career-high spot of No. 37 on the singles list when he claimed his first ATP crown by knocking off fellow American Alex Michelsen at the 2024 Hall of Fame Open. Giron recently made the 2025 Australian Open singles third round and reached the Roland-Garros singles third round for the second time in 2023. His 2023 also included top-10 wins against Holger Rune of Denmark and Casper Ruud of Norway. McDonald, who opened 2023 by beating top seed and defending champion Rafael Nadal in three sets at the Australian Open, represented the United States at the Davis Cup Finals in Uzbekistan and achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 37 the same year. Rojer collected his fourth Grand Slam title at Roland-Garros in 2022, teaming with Marcelo Arevalo to defeat Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek in the final. Rojer won three ATP championships with Arevalo in 2023 and another alongside Lloyd Glasspool in 2024.
MARTIN MILESTONES
Head coach Billy Martin is in his 32nd year at the helm of the UCLA men's tennis program and this season marks his 42nd since joining the staff of friend, mentor and fellow UCLA Athletic Hall of Famer Glenn Bassett. Martin, who passed Bassett to became the program's all-time leader in head-coaching wins during the 2019 season, is the longest-tenured active coach at UCLA. He holds a career record of 658-167 (.798) as head coach. Martin guided the 2005 Bruins to the program's 16th NCAA team title and 23 of his squads have finished in the top five at the season-ending NCAA Championships. Benjamin Kohlloeffel (2006), Marcos Giron (2014) and Mackenzie McDonald (2016) have earned NCAA singles titles on Martin's watch, while UCLA has become a frequent landing spot for doubles champions of late. In addition to 1996 winners Justin Gimelstob and Srdjan Muskatirovic, three of the most recent seven titleholders โ McDonald/Martin Redlicki in 2016, Redlicki/Evan Zhu in 2018 and Maxime Cressy/Keegan Smith in 2019 โ have called Westwood home.
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