The team’s winning record makes them one of the most dominant teams in the Big West this season
By EVA MACHADO — sports@theaggie.org
UC Davis men’s tennis faced the University of Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors on April 12 at the UC Davis Marya Welch Tennis Center, ultimately beating them with a final score of 4-3.
Starting strong, the Aggies opened with first-year Lucas Bollinger and fourth-year Coleton Hootman as the leading doubles team. Bollinger and Hootman defeated their opponents, third-year Votja Vlkovsky and second-year Karl Collins, 6-3. However, the remainder of the doubles sets did not go as well for the Aggies.
The Rainbow Warriors roared back in the doubles competition and the Aggies struggled, losing the remaining two doubles matches. The teams — fourth-years Andras Necz and Brett Brinkman and fourth-year Mitchell Davis and first-year Constantinos Djakouris — played strong matches, but the Rainbow Warriors defeated both pairs.
Singles competition began with UC Davis’s second-year Sam De Vries, who handily beat his opponent, Guillaume Tattevin, in two straight sets with scores of 6-1 and 6-0, respectively. This win was Vries’ sixth singles win of the season and evened the overall score between the Aggies and Rainbow Warriors.
In the next singles match, Rainbow Warriors’ fourth-year Andre Ilagan defeated UC Davis’s Djakouris in both sets (6-3, 6-3).
Then, Brinkman came back strong in the singles competition following a tough loss in the doubles competition. Brinkman beat the University of Hawai’i third-year Axel Labrunie in two sets (7-5, 6-2).
Bollinger carried his excellent play in the doubles contest into the singles competition., beating his Rainbow Warrior opponent, graduate student Lucas Labrunie, in two sets (7-5, 6-1). Both of these matches showcased the power and skill that the Aggies are capable of.
These wins solidified the Aggies’ lead over the Rainbow Warriors. The Rainbow Warriors managed one more win during the single competition on court two with Hawaii’s Vlkovsky beating UC Davis’s second-year Ryan Torres in three sets (1-6, 6-2, 6-2). Torres’s inexperience seemed to hinder him against an experienced veteran like Vlkovsky who easily cruised through three sets.
Mitchell Davis sealed the deal for UC Davis by winning the last singles match of the day (4-6, 6-4, 6-3). Davis lost his first set against his Rainbow Warrior opponent; however, he came back fighting in the second and third sets. Davis’s match ended the day and secured the win for the Aggies.
The final score was 4-3 for the Aggies. This win extends UC Davis’s four-game winning streak and is the team’s seventh win of their past eight matches.
Following this win, UC Davis’s Big West standing is 4-0, solidifying the group’s dominance over the Big West competition this year. The Aggies have showcased their capabilities throughout this strong season.
UC Davis was set to play UC Irvine on April 14 and hoped to continue their winning streak in that match; however, The Aggies ultimately lost the match 0-4 to the Anteaters.
Despite the recent loss, the Aggies are still one of the strongest teams in the Big West Conference this season. With one more regular season game left on the schedule, UC Davis will seek to close out the season with a win against crosstown rival Sacramento State on April 19.
Written by: Eva Machado — sports@theaggie.org
