Friday, May 9
Los Angeles, Calif.
2:00 PM
UCLA
4
vs
2
USC
Photo by: Mac Brown
Men's Tennis Beats USC to Claim NCAA Quarterfinal Spot
May 09, 2025 | Men's Tennis
LOS ANGELES โ The UCLA men's tennis team defeated crosstown rival USC 4-2 Friday afternoon at Los Angeles Tennis Center, punching its ticket to the NCAA Championship quarterfinal round and finals site of Waco, Texas. Spencer Johnson sealed the victory with an ace.
All six singles matches reached third sets and doubles went the distance, with a tiebreaker deciding the first point. Alexander Hoogmartens, Kaylan Bigun and Emon van Loben Sels gave the Bruins (19-8) a 3-1 lead. Connor Church of the Trojans (16-11) cut his team's deficit in half, but Johnson would mount an improbable comeback to seal the result.
UCLA advances to meet the winner of Saturday's (10 a.m. PT) matchup between No. 3 seed Texas and 14th-seeded Tennessee. Hurd Tennis Center hosts the final three rounds of competition, starting Friday, May 16 and continuing through Sunday, May 18.
Johnson and Aadarsh Tripathi stayed perfect as a doubles pair, winning for the eighth time in as many decisions together. Their 6-2 result against Volodymyr Iakubenko/Oscar Weightman on Court 2 was answered by Trojans Tristan Bradley and Peter Makk, who collaborated on 6-3 decision over Hoogmartens/Giacomo Revelli. Finally, on Court 3, Church and Nathan Trouve teamed to fight off a match point and outlast van Loben Sels/Gianluca Ballotta 7-6(6).
Each side picked up three singles first sets, but they were far from the next point. Hoogmartens ultimately evened the score, bouncing back to beat Karl Lee 4-6, 6-3, 6-3. Hoogmartens' eighth straight positive result was also his team-high 18th dual-match singles victory.
Bigun also continued to find success in singles play, dealing Weightman a 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 defeat. Bigun has eight wins in as many matches and has prevailed in nine consecutive decisions.
No. 110 van Loben Sels put the Bruins one point away with his 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 triumph over No. 88 Trouve on Court 2. With the remaining three contests still up for grabs, Church downed Tripathi 7-5, 6-7(5), 6-4 to make the score 3-2.
No. 35 Johnson faced a 1-4 third-set deficit opposite Iakubenko on Court 4. That proved not enough, though, as Johnson took the next four games. Serving for the match with a 40-0 advantage, he saw Iakubenko claw back to force a deuce point. Then, on his second serve, Johnson deposited an ace by the Trojan.
ย
Tennis Match Results
USC vs UCLA
5/9/2025 at Los Angeles, CA
(Los Angeles Tennis Center)
#16 UCLA 4, #28 USC 2
Singles competition
1. #20 Rudy Quan (UCLA) vs. #16 Peter Makk (USC) 7-6 (7-4), 3-6, 3-3, unfinished
2. #110 Emon van Loben Sels (UCLA) def. #88 Nathan Trouve (USC) 6-4, 5-7, 6-3
3. Kaylan Bigun (UCLA) def. Oscar Weightman (USC) 6-2, 3-6, 6-2
4. Alexander Hoogmartens (UCLA) def. Karl Lee (USC) 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
5. #35 Spencer Johnson (UCLA) def. Volodymyr Iakubenko (USC) 6-7 (6-8), 6-4, 6-4
6. Connor Church (USC) def. #116 Aadarsh Tripathi (UCLA) 7-5, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4
Doubles competition
1. Tristan Bradley/Peter Makk (USC) def. Alexander Hoogmartens/Giacomo Revelli (UCLA) 6-3
2. Spencer Johnson/Aadarsh Tripathi (UCLA) def. Volodymyr Iakubenko/Oscar Weightman (USC) 6-2
3. Connor Church/Nathan Trouve (USC) def. Gianluca Ballotta/Emon van Loben Sels (UCLA) 7-6 (8-6)
Match Notes:
USC 16-11; National ranking #28
UCLA 19-8; National ranking #16
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (4,3,2,6,5)
NCAA Championships - Super-Regional Round
All six singles matches reached third sets and doubles went the distance, with a tiebreaker deciding the first point. Alexander Hoogmartens, Kaylan Bigun and Emon van Loben Sels gave the Bruins (19-8) a 3-1 lead. Connor Church of the Trojans (16-11) cut his team's deficit in half, but Johnson would mount an improbable comeback to seal the result.
UCLA advances to meet the winner of Saturday's (10 a.m. PT) matchup between No. 3 seed Texas and 14th-seeded Tennessee. Hurd Tennis Center hosts the final three rounds of competition, starting Friday, May 16 and continuing through Sunday, May 18.
Johnson and Aadarsh Tripathi stayed perfect as a doubles pair, winning for the eighth time in as many decisions together. Their 6-2 result against Volodymyr Iakubenko/Oscar Weightman on Court 2 was answered by Trojans Tristan Bradley and Peter Makk, who collaborated on 6-3 decision over Hoogmartens/Giacomo Revelli. Finally, on Court 3, Church and Nathan Trouve teamed to fight off a match point and outlast van Loben Sels/Gianluca Ballotta 7-6(6).
Each side picked up three singles first sets, but they were far from the next point. Hoogmartens ultimately evened the score, bouncing back to beat Karl Lee 4-6, 6-3, 6-3. Hoogmartens' eighth straight positive result was also his team-high 18th dual-match singles victory.
Bigun also continued to find success in singles play, dealing Weightman a 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 defeat. Bigun has eight wins in as many matches and has prevailed in nine consecutive decisions.
No. 110 van Loben Sels put the Bruins one point away with his 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 triumph over No. 88 Trouve on Court 2. With the remaining three contests still up for grabs, Church downed Tripathi 7-5, 6-7(5), 6-4 to make the score 3-2.
No. 35 Johnson faced a 1-4 third-set deficit opposite Iakubenko on Court 4. That proved not enough, though, as Johnson took the next four games. Serving for the match with a 40-0 advantage, he saw Iakubenko claw back to force a deuce point. Then, on his second serve, Johnson deposited an ace by the Trojan.
ย
????#GoBruins | #NCAATennis pic.twitter.com/Ecsutrcpjk
โ UCLA Men's Tennis (@uclatennis) May 10, 2025
Tennis Match Results
USC vs UCLA
5/9/2025 at Los Angeles, CA
(Los Angeles Tennis Center)
#16 UCLA 4, #28 USC 2
Singles competition
1. #20 Rudy Quan (UCLA) vs. #16 Peter Makk (USC) 7-6 (7-4), 3-6, 3-3, unfinished
2. #110 Emon van Loben Sels (UCLA) def. #88 Nathan Trouve (USC) 6-4, 5-7, 6-3
3. Kaylan Bigun (UCLA) def. Oscar Weightman (USC) 6-2, 3-6, 6-2
4. Alexander Hoogmartens (UCLA) def. Karl Lee (USC) 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
5. #35 Spencer Johnson (UCLA) def. Volodymyr Iakubenko (USC) 6-7 (6-8), 6-4, 6-4
6. Connor Church (USC) def. #116 Aadarsh Tripathi (UCLA) 7-5, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4
Doubles competition
1. Tristan Bradley/Peter Makk (USC) def. Alexander Hoogmartens/Giacomo Revelli (UCLA) 6-3
2. Spencer Johnson/Aadarsh Tripathi (UCLA) def. Volodymyr Iakubenko/Oscar Weightman (USC) 6-2
3. Connor Church/Nathan Trouve (USC) def. Gianluca Ballotta/Emon van Loben Sels (UCLA) 7-6 (8-6)
Match Notes:
USC 16-11; National ranking #28
UCLA 19-8; National ranking #16
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (4,3,2,6,5)
NCAA Championships - Super-Regional Round
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
2,1,3
#1 Singles Match
1234
Peter Makk / 0 (16/-) [USC]
6630
733UF
#2 Singles Match
123
Nathan Trouve / 0 (88/-) [USC]
473
656
#3 Singles Match
123
Oscar Weightman / 0 [USC]
262
636
#4 Singles Match
123
Karl Lee / 0 [USC]
633
466
#5 Singles Match
123
Volodymyr Iakubenko / 0 [USC]
744
666
#6 Singles Match
123
Connor Church / 0 [USC]
766
574
Order of Finish:
4,3,2,6,5
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
NCAA Men's Tennis vs. USC - Billy Martin, Spencer Johnson (May 9, 2025)
Saturday, May 10
NCAA MTN Super Regionals - Billy Martin, Spencer Johnson (May 9, 2025)
Friday, May 09
M. Tennis Interview - Coach Martin on T2's "Second Serve" (April 28, 2025)
Monday, April 28
Portraits of Culture - Bryce Pereira
Friday, May 28