California Baptist University
UC San Diego
TRITON TROUNCERS
4/8/2008 7:00:00 AM | Men's Track
California Baptist def. UC San Diego, 5-4
Records:
UC San Diego (No. 11 NCAA DII)
9-10 overall
California Baptist (No. 7 NAIA)
13-4 overall
LA JOLLA, Calif. --- Patrick Olobo's thrilling three-set win at No. 3-singles broke a 4-4 tie and lifted the NAIA's No. 7-ranked California Baptist to a 5-4 win Tuesday over NCAA Division II UC San Diego in a non-conference match at the Northview Tennis Courts on the UCSD campus.
The win is the Lancers' fourth straight as they improve to 13-4 on the season. The Tritons, who defeated NCAA Division I teams Gonzaga, Northern Arizona and UC Riverside earlier this year, fall to 9-10.
With the match tied at 4-4, all eyes turned to the third court where Olobo and Kazumi Negishi were going toe-to-toe. After taking the first set 6-3, Olobo took a 5-4 lead and was serving for the match in the second set before Negishi came back to win 5-7, forcing a third set. Again Olobo was on the verge of winning with two match points on his serve, leading 5-2 in the set when Negishi came back and eventually broke Olobo. Negishi then held his serve to make it 5-4 before Olobo finally put him away to clinch win and the match for the Lancers.
UC San Diego took a 2-1 lead after doubles, winning the first two matches at No. 2 and No. 3. Alessandro Ventre and Carlos Cirne-Lima won at No. 1 to keep the Lancers within striking distance heading into singles.
The Tritons quickly took a 3-1 lead when Blake Meister defeated Moti Eisikovits, 6-3, 6-3, at No. 4. The Lancers then took a 4-3 lead after Ventre at No. 1, Karlis Mijons at No. 5 and Cirne-Lima at No. 2 all won on their respective courts. Vincent Nguyen knotted the match at 4-4 when he defeated Rafael Dal-Ri at No. 6 to set the stage for Olobo and Negishi's showdown.
Singles
1 ? Alessandro Ventre (CBU) def. Bijan Moallemi 6-1, 6-3
2 ? Carlos Cirne-Lima (CBU) def. Eric Rubens 6-3, 6-4
3 ? Patrick Olobo (CBU) def. Kazumi Negishi 6-3, 5-7, 6-4
4 ? Blake Meister def. Moti Eisikovits (CBU) 6-3, 6-3
5 ? Karlis Miljons (CBU) def. Alex Placek 6-2, 6-2
6 ? Vincent Nguyen def. Rafael Dal-Ri (CBU) 6-2, 6-2
Doubles
1 ? Ventre/Cirne-Lima (CBU) def. Placek/Meister 8-5
2 ? Moallemi/Erik Elliot def. Eisikovits/Miljons (CBU) 8-3
3 ? Negeshi/Rubens def. Olobo/Andrew Meister (CBU) 8-3
