Horned Frogs Triumph over UCLA in Westwood

Wednesday, March 13

Los Angeles, Calif.

4 PM

TCU

UCLA

Horned Frogs Triumph over UCLA in Westwood

3/13/2024 8:10:00 PM | Men's Tennis

Box Score Box Score

No. 2 TCU defeats 29th-ranked Bruins 4-3 for ninth ranked win in 2023-24

By: Brady Johnson

LOS ANGELES – No. 2 TCU claimed its ninth ranked win in 2023-24 to begin its three-match stay in southern California on Wednesday.

The Horned Frogs defeated 29^th-ranked UCLA 4-3 at the Los Angeles Tennis Center, ahead of weekend duals vs. No. 44 USC and No. 40 Pepperdine.

TCU (12-1) won the doubles point and swept courts one, four and five in singles to clinch the match at 4-0. Head coaches David Roditi and Billy Martin, both of whom have won multiple national titles, agreed to play out the remaining courts. UCLA (6-4) got on the board with a victory at six. Courts two and three saw a third set and were decided by 10-point tiebreakers. The Bruins claimed both by two-point margins.

"Very good road win at UCLA for the guys," Roditi said. "Really squirrelly, tight doubles point that turned out to be critical with a 4-3 win. Just really proud of the way they overcame a bunch of stuff and beat a very good team here on the road. Historic place here at UCLA. Look around, all the national championships banners, just a great road win. Now, we've got USC on Friday. It's going to be tough. Go Frogs."

Likely needing the doubles point to win, the 23-time national champion Bruins came out inspired and gave all TCU could handle in doubles. All three courts were gridlocked at 4-4. Sebastian Gorzny and Pedro Vives, the ITA No. 2 doubles tandem, secured a crucial break on one before finishing their match on serve. Courts two and three both extended to tiebreakers. Ultimately, the 40^th-ranekd duo of Duncan Chan and Lui Maxted prevailed, taking the breaker via a 7-4 margin. Jack Pinnington and Tomas Jirousek led 4-1 at the time of the court two clinch.

Maxted then extended TCU's lead to 2-0 via a 6-2, 6-2 decision on court four vs. Gianluca Ballotta. Jirousek followed with a 6-3, 6-0 walloping of Aadarsh Tripathi in the fifth flight. Pinnington secured the match-clincher – his first of the season – at one, defeating No. 28 Govind Nanda, 6-3, 6-3.

The Horned Frogs improved to 6-10 all-time vs. UCLA and extended their winning streak vs. the Bruins to four. TCU is 3-1 this season in matches that go the distance.

TCU played its second consecutive match without three-time All-American Jake Fearnley. The fifth-year senior sports a 9-1 singles record and is 6-0 vs. ranked opponents. Fearnley has anchored the top court all season for the Horned Frogs.

Doubles Rundown

Gorzny and Vives struck first on court one. They broke back trailing 1-2 vs. Timothy Li and Giacomo Revelli en route to their 36^th win in two years as partners. They are 16-5 together in 2023-24.

Chan and Maxted exchanged multiple breaks with Spencer Johnson and Eric von loben Sels at two before overpowering the duo in the tiebreaker. The tandem continues to lead TCU in doubles wins this season with 18.

Jirousek and Pinnington faced Nanda and Jeffrey Fradkin on the bottom court. They did not drop a game on serve while playing their second straight match as partners. Pinnington traditionally commands court two alongside Fearnley.

TCU has won 10 doubles points in 13 tries this season.

Doubles Results

#2 Sebastian Gorzny / Pedro Vives (TCU) def. Timothy Li / Giacomo Revelli (UCLA): 6-4
#40 Duncan Chan / Lui Maxted (TCU) def. Spencer Johnson / Eric von loben Sels (UCLA): 7-6 [7-4]
Jack Pinnington / Tomas Jirousek vs. Jeffrey Fradkin / Govind Nanda (UCLA): 6-6 [4-1], unfinished

Order of finish: 1, 2

Singles Rundown

Maxted, No. 87 in the ITA singles rankings, broke Ballotta within three games in both frames. He was the first player off the court in set one and the first to clinch. Maxted improved to 10-1 in singles play in 2024. He leads TCU in victories in duals with 17.

Jirousek's bagel in set two vs. Tripathi made him 2-0 all-time vs. the Bruins dating back to TCU's 7-0 shutout of UCLA on March 12, 2023. The fifth-year senior improved to 5-4 in singles play and 2-0 on court five this season.

Pinnington snared his team-leading 20^th singles win and 12^th over ranked opposition in his straight set takedown of Nanda.

Vives, 35^th nationally in singles, took set one on court two vs. Revelli, 6-4, but was broken midway through the second frame, extending the match to a third set. He fell short, 9-11, in a wild 10-point tiebreaker.

Gorzny battled his serve vs. Johnson all afternoon on three, falling by the slimmest of margins, 7-6 [7-4], 6-7 [8-10], 1-0 [10-8].

Jorge Plans Gonzales defeated Chan, 6-4, 6-4, at six to give the Bruins their lone true singles win.

Singles Results

#10 Jack Pinnington (TCU) def. #28 Govind Nanda (UCLA): 6-3, 6-3
Giacomo Revelli (UCLA) def. #35 Pedro Vives (TCU): 4-6, 6-3, 1-0 [11-9]
Spencer Johnson (UCLA) def. #53 Sebastian Gorzny (TCU): 7-6 [7-4], 6-7 [8-10], 1-0 [10-8]
#87 Lui Maxted (TCU) def. Gianluca Ballota (UCLA): 6-2, 6-2
Tomas Jirousek (TCU) def. Aadarsh Tripathi (UCLA): 6-3, 6-0
Jorge Plans Gonzalez (UCLA) def. Duncan Chan (TCU): 6-4, 6-4

Up Next

TCU battles the Trojans at 7 p.m. CT on Friday at David X. Marks Stadium. The Horned Frogs blanked USC 7-0 last season in Fort Worth. TCU then concludes its spring break in Los Angeles at 5 p.m. CT on Sunday vs. Pepperdine.