Friday, May 29, 1998
Racketeers win berth to third round
MTENNIS: Team exceeds hopes with single-handed upsets, doubles success
By Stephanie Chan
Daily Bruin Contributor
The Bruins have met and broken expectations in the NCAA Singles Championships. Three UCLA players - Jean-Noel Grinda, Vince Allegre and Matt Breen - entered the tournament, and three remain. UCLA is the only school with all of its entered players still remaining. This has translated into major upsets on the part of UCLA.
Allegre knocked out No. 10-ranked and No. 8-seeded Stanford's Mike Bryan in second round action Thursday, 6-4, 6-2. Earlier this season Allegre lost to Mike's twin brother - Bob Bryan - twice and lost to Mike just recently in the team championships, 7-5, 6-2. This time it was Allegre who eliminated the Bryan brother and not the other way around.
Breen also pulled off the upset defeating No. 9 and 16 seeded Harvard's James Blake, but perhaps "pulled off" isn't the best of terms. Breen dominated the second round match against Blake, earning a 6-1, 6-1 victory.
Grinda's second-round opponent, South Carolina's Guillaume Legst, probably had an upset on his mind after taking the first set, 6-2. Grinda, however, grabbed the next two sets, 6-2, 6-4, to advance to the round of 16.
Of the 16 third round players, seven of them are from the Pac-10. Grinda will be facing one of these players in the next round: No. 6 seed Stanford's Bob Bryan. In previous meetings against Stanford, Grinda has never been matched with Bryan so this will be their first meeting.
Allegre will play No. 9 and No. 16 seed Virginia Commonwealth University's Daniel Anderson. His first and second round victories all came in three sets and included tiebreakers. He defeated Baylor's Johann Jooste, 6-4, 6-7 (3), 6-4, advancing to the round of 16.
The next opponent on Breen's agenda is No. 5 seed Mississippi State's Thomas Dupre. Breen has improved since his last NCAA Singles Championships appearance. Last year, he suffered a three-set first round loss to Kentucky's Ludde Sundin.
The Bruins are finding success in the NCAA Doubles Championships as well.
Breen and Grinda opened the tournament with a first round win over Tulane's Ronald Kloppert and Robert Samuelson, 7-5, 6-4. The UCLA duo will face Texas' Nick Crowell and Paul Martin for the second time in the NCAA Championship scene.
In UCLA's first round team victory over Texas, Breen and Grinda defeated Crowell and Martin, 8-3.
PATRICK LAM
UCLA's Jean-Noel Grinda looks to edge opponents out of the NCAAs.