Feb. 20, 2004
TUCSON, Ariz. - The No. 38 Arizona men's tennis team fell to the No. 19-ranked USC Trojans, 7-0. Arizona won one doubles match but lost all six singles matches. Arizona falls to 6-2, while USC improves to 4-1.
For the first time this spring, Arizona failed to win the crucial doubles point. On court one, the undefeated team of junior Colin O'Grady and sophomore Roger Matalonga battled Johan Berg and Adriano Biasella. Each team held serve for the first six games, before Arizona's duo could break Berg and Biasella. Once Arizona broke the duo, the pair of Wildcats would only lose one more game, winning, 8-4.
On courts two and three however, the Trojans handled their Arizona opponents. The senior pair of Tom Lloyd and Whi Kim fell to Daniel Langre and Drew Hoskins, 8-3. Sophomore Tim Mullane filled in for the sick Daniel Andrus and paired with junior Paul Warkentin on court three. The tandem fell to Jamil Al-Agba and Ruben Torres, 8-3.
Down 1-0, Lloyd fell quickly to Biasella on court two, 6-4, 6-2 after a groin injury in the second set hampered his mobility. Matalonga lost his first match in eight tries this spring to the No. 35-ranked Berg, 6-4, 6-4, in the No. 3 position.
With Arizona trailing 3-0 with four matches left, Arizona needed wins in the second sets in three of the four remaining matches to keep their hopes alive. Warkentin won his second set, 7-5, Kim broke Al-Agba in the second and won the tiebreaker 7-6 (5), to force a third set. With Mullane battling No. 59 Hoskins on court six, Hoskins proved too experienced for Mullane, winning the match for USC, 6-4, 7-6 (9).
Once the match was clinched, Kim retired tied 2-2 in the third set to give the Trojans the win, 7-0. Warkentin fell in the No. 5 position, 6-0, 5-7, 7-6 (4). O'Grady lost to No. 51 Torres, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4.
Results
Doubles:
1. Matalonga/O'Grady (UA) def. Berg/Biasella (USC) - 8-4
2. Langre/Hoskins (USC) def. Kim/Lloyd (UA) - 8-3
3. Al-Agba/Torres (USC) def. Warkentin/Mullane (UA) - 8-3
Singles:
1. Al-Agba (USC) def. Kim (UA) - 6-1, 6-7 (5), 2-2 retired
2. Biasella (USC) def. Lloyd (UA) - 6-4, 6-2
3. No. 35 Berg (USC) def. Matalonga (UA) - 6-4, 6-4
4. No. 51 Torres (USC) def. O'Grady (UA) - 4-6, 6-1, 6-4
5. Langre (USC) def. Warkentin (UA) - 6-0, 5-7, 7-6 (4)
6. No. 59 Hoskins (USC) def. Mullane (UA) - 6-4, 7-6 (9)
