| Men’s Tennis |
|---|
| UCLA — 4 |
| UCS — 0 |
There was nothing easy about it.
Not in the rallies, not in the scorelines, and definitely not in the moment.
But by the end, fifth-seed UCLA men’s tennis (17-6, 10-3 Big Ten) had done more than win — it had taken control of a rivalry match that was tighter than the final score suggests, sweeping fourth-seed USC (18-7, 10-3 Big Ten) 4-0 in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals Thursday at Libbey Park.
This was not dominance from the start. It was composure built over time.
Doubles showed that immediately.
Senior Aadarsh Tripathi and junior Andy Nguyen fell 6-3 on court one, giving USC the early edge.
But UCLA did not let that moment stretch.
Junior Spencer Johnson and freshman Bengt Reinhard answered with a steady 6-3 win on court two, and on court three, senior Gianluca Ballotta and redshirt junior Emon van Loben Sels closed the door with a 6-4 victory to secure the point.
It wasn’t overwhelming, it was controlled. And that mattered.
Once singles began, UCLA did not chase the match. It dictated it.
No. 87 sophomore Rudy Quan was the first to strike, earning a straight-sets win on court two with clean, efficient tennis that never allowed momentum to shift. Soon after, redshirt freshman Cassius Chinlund added another point on court six, navigating a tight second set before closing it out in a tiebreak.
That left one more point, and all the pressure shifted to the middle of the courts.
Tripathi had opened strong but dropped his second set on court four, forcing a decider in a match that began to feel like the turning point of the afternoon. With No. 52 Johnson and No. 36 van Loben Sels still fighting through unfinished matches nearby, court four became UCLA’s clearest path forward. Tripathi stayed composed.
He didn’t rush. He didn’t force.
He finished.
With a late push in the third set, Tripathi secured the clincher and sent UCLA through.
The sweep says one thing. The match told another.
Three other courts were still alive, all deep into competitive sets. USC never faded. UCLA simply handled the bigger moments better.
That difference showed up where it matters most. Not in how the match started, but in how it ended.
With the competitive win, the Bruins move on to the Big Ten semifinal, keeping their title defense alive and setting up a clash with top-seeded Michigan State on Friday.
