MALIBU, Calif. — The Pepperdine men's team rallied back from dropping the doubles point against UCLA, yet the Bruins handed the Waves a heartbreaking 4-3 loss at Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center on Sunday afternoon.
Tied 3-3 with the match on court three in the third set, UCLA's Spencer Johnson fended off not one, but three match points in a 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 win to clinch the Bruins' (4-2) victory over the Waves (1-5). For the second time at home this season, the match came down to the final singles point, which, unfortunately for the Waves, didn't break Pepperdine's way.
Although UCLA won the doubles point for the third time this season, Pepperdine overtook UCLA in singles with straight-set wins from Pietro Fellin and Maxi Homberg on courts two and four, respectively, to flip the script. Sunday was another dominant match for Fellin, who won the first two breakpoint opportunities for a 6-4 first-set win over Giacomo Revelli, then rolled 6-0 in the second for his fourth win of the season.
One court over, Homberg got back in the win column with his straight-set win over Gianluca Ballotta for his third singles victory this spring. Homberg and Ballotta traded breaks in the first set and the match was close throughout until the final game of the first set, where Homberg showed off his athleticism with back-to-back overheads before winning the first set when Ballotta's return of a Homberg forehand went into the net.
From there, Homberg got out to a 4-3 lead, yet Ballotta fended off match point on several occasions and broke Homberg in a pivotal tenth game to extend the match. Homberg would break Ballotta, then hold serve for the match when Ballotta's return of Homberg's serve went long.
UCLA countered with a win on court six, yet Pepperdine broke the tie with a three-set win from Zach Stephens. Playing at the fifth position for the first time this season, Stephens bounced back against Emon van Loben Sels for the second singles win of his career. After dropping the first set 6-4, Stephens went up a break in the second game and countered with a 6-4, second-set win of his own. Then in the third, Stephens rolled to a 6-1 win.
The Bruins would tie the score at 3-3 with #58 Govid Nanda's three-set win over #28 Edward Winter. Pepperdine's star freshman trailed 4-1 in the second set, yet rallied back with five straight games to take the second set 6-4. Unfortunately, Nanda took over in the third set, shifting the focus onto court three where UCLA would eventually clinch the match.
RESULTS
Singles
1. #58 Govind Nanda (UCLA) def. #28 Edward Winter (PEPP) 6-3, 4-6, 6-2
2. Pietro Fellin (PEPP) def. Giacomo Revelli (UCLA) 6-4, 6-0
3. Spencer Johnson (UCLA) def. Linus Carlsson Halldin (PEPP) 4-6, 7-5, 7-5
4. Maxi Homberg (PEPP) def. Gianluca Ballotta (UCLA) 6-4, 7-5
5. Zach Stephens (PEPP) def. Emon van Loben Sels (UCLA) 4-6, 6-4, 6-1
6. Aadarsh Tripathi (UCLA) def. George Davis (PEPP) 6-4, 6-4
Order of finish: 2,6,4,5,1,3*
Doubles
1. Maxi Homberg/Chris Papa (PEPP) vs. Timothy Li/Giacomo Revelli (UCLA) 5-3, unfinished
2. Emon van Loben Sels/Spencer Johnson (UCLA) def. Linus Carlsson Halldin/George Davis (PEPP) 6-3
3. Govind Nanda/Jeffery Fradkin (UCLA) def. Edward Winter/Pietro Fellin (PEPP) 6-3
Order of finish: 3,2
UP NEXT: The Waves will head to SEC country for road matches against Vanderbilt on Friday, Feb. 23 and #12 Texas A&M on Sunday, Feb. 25.
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