The No. 1 Virginia men’s tennis team (5-0) defeated No. 9 UCLA, 6-1, on Tuesday night (Feb. 9) at the Boyd Tinsley Courts at the Boar’s Head Sports Center in Charlottesville, Va.
“UCLA is a great team with tremendous depth from top to bottom,” said Virginia head coach Brian Boland. “We are really playing at a high level for this point in the season and there is still room for improvement in front of us. The team has really come together and it has been a really enjoyable journey so far.”
The Cavaliers started off doubles with senior Mac Styslinger (Birmingham, Ala.) and junior Thai-Son Kwiatkowski (Charlotte, N.C.) defeating Joseph Di Giulio and Karue Sell, 6-2, at No. 2. Senior Ryan Shane (Falls Church, Va.) and junior Luca Corinteli (Alexandria, Va.) secured the point with a 6-3 victory at No. 1. Junior J.C. Aragone (Yorba Linda, Calif.) and sophomore Collin Altamirano (Sacramento, Calif.) were edged in their No. 3 doubles match, 7-6.
In singles, sophomore Henrik Wiersholm (Kirkland, Wash.) earned a quick 6-1, 6-2 victory over Di Giulio at No. 6. Kwiatkowski followed with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Gage Brymer at No. 2. For the third-straight match, Aragone clinched the victory for the Cavaliers, this time with a 7-6, 6-4 victory over Logan Staggs at No. 5. Shane won the tiebreak in his second set to finish off Mackenzie McDonald 6-3, 7-6. Altamirano won 7-6, 6-3 at No. 3. Styslinger won his first set 6-4 but dropped his final two sets 6-2, 6-4 to fall to Sell at No. 5.
“UCLA has one of the best players in the country at No. 1 and we do as well, so we knew that would be a tightly-contested match,” Boland said. “Thai keeps rolling at two. He is playing some really good tennis. I think the same could be said of Collin, who is so solid. I was really impressed with our one, two and three tonight.”
The Cavaliers will be the host team for this weekend’s Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Men’s Team Indoor Championship with all competition over the four-day event (Feb. 12-15) scheduled to take place at Boar’s Head Sports Club. Virginia has a first-round match-up with No. 16 San Diego on Friday, Feb. 12 at 6:30 p.m. The tournament, featuring the top-16 teams in the country, runs through Monday, Feb. 15.
“I believe this win will give us a lot a confidence as we head into National Indoors, an event that we have looked forward to hosting for a long time,” Boland said. “I can already feel the excitement for Friday night. We hope that people really come out and support us. I believe this weekend is going to be really special for the players.”
Admission is free for the ITA National Indoor Championship and for all Virginia home matches.
No. 1 Virginia 6, No. 9 UCLA 1
Singles:
- #11 Ryan Shane (VA) def. Mackenzie McDonald (UCLA) 6-3, 7-6
- #2 Thai-Son Kwiatkowski (VA) def. Gage Brymer (UCLA) 6-3, 6-3
- Collin Altamirano (VA) def. #48 Martin Redlicki (UCLA) 7-6, 6-3
- Karue Sell (UCLA) def. Mac Styslinger (VA) 4-6, 6-2, 6-4
- #74 J.C. Aragone (VA) def. #98 Logan Staggs (UCLA) 7-6, 6-4
- #90 Henrik Wiersholm (VA) def. Joseph Di Giulio (UCLA) 6-1, 6-2
Doubles:
- #14 Ryan Shane/Luca Corinteli (VA) def. Mackenzie McDonald/Martin Redlicki (UCLA) 6-3
- #5 Mac Styslinger/Thai-Son Kwiatkowski (VA) def. Joseph Di Giulio/Karue Sell (UCLA) 6-2
- Gage Brymer/Austin Rapp (UCLA) def. J.C. Aragone/Collin Altamirano (VA) 7-6
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (6,2,5,1,3,4)
T-2:35 A-362
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