Men's Tennis Falls to Washington in Pac-12 Semifinals

OJAI, Calif. – The fifth-seeded UCLA men's tennis team had its time ended at the Pac-12 Championships Friday at Libbey Park, as No. 8-seed Washington triumphed in a 4-3 match to reach the tournament's final round.

Jeffrey Fradkin, Karl Lee and Bryce Pereira were each victorious in singles play for the Bruins (13-12), but Cesar Bouchelaghem prevailed in the day's final match for the Huskies (18-10). Clement Chidekh and Jack Davis also earned singles wins for UW, which also narrowly took the doubles point.

UCLA took an early edge in doubles play, as Giacomo Revelli and Patrick Zahraj collaborated on a 7-5 upset of No. 33 Jack Davis/Ewen Lumsden on Court 1. The Bruins have now knocked off two nationally-ranked pairs this season. Washington righted its ship, however, prevailing on Courts 2 and 3. First off were Cesar Bouchelaghem and Brandon Wong, who bested Jeffrey Fradkin and Bryce Pereira by a 6-4 margin on Court 3. The opening point was then determined on 2, where Clement Chidekh and Nedim Suko broke the serve of Karl Lee and Max Wild at 6-5 for the win.

The Huskies' lead got a bump to 2-0 thanks to Chidekh's 6-3, 6-3 win against Zahraj on Court 1. Fradkin cut the UCLA deficit in half with a 6-1, 6-3 display on Court 6. Each of the remaining matches would go to three sets. Davis extended the UW lead to 3-1 when he fought off Revelli for a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 result on 2. Pereira collected another important victory down the stretch for the Bruins on 4. One day after rebounding from a 2-5 third-set deficit to clinch their quarterfinal-round win against Utah, he got past Han-Chih Lin with a 3-6, 7-6(2), 6-4 showing to tie it up. In the deciding match, though, Bouchelaghem took the final five games from Leustian for a 6-7(3), 6-4, 6-4 decision and a spot in the title match.

Tennis Match Results
Washington vs UCLA
4/22/2022 at Ojai, CA
(Libbey Park)

#53 Washington 4, #46 UCLA 3

Singles competition
1. #6 Clement Chidekh (WASH) def. #75 Patrick Zahraj (UCLA) 6-3, 6-3
2. Jack Davis (WASH) def. Giacomo Revelli (UCLA) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
3. Karl Lee (UCLA) def. Ewen Lumsden (WASH) 6-3, 0-6, 6-3
4. Bryce Pereira (UCLA) def. Han-Chih Lin (WASH) 3-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4
5. Cesar Bouchelaghem (WASH) def. Stefan Leustian (UCLA) 6-7 (3-7), 6-4, 6-4
6. Jeffrey Fradkin (UCLA) def. Nedim Suko (WASH) 6-1, 6-3

Doubles competition
1. Giacomo Revelli/Patrick Zahraj (UCLA) def. #33 Jack Davis/Ewen Lumsden (WASH) 6-2
2. Clement Chidekh/Nedim Suko (WASH) def. Karl Lee/Max Wild (UCLA) 7-5
3. Cesar Bouchelaghem/Brandon Wong (WASH) def. Jeffrey Fradkin/Bryce Pereira (UCLA) 6-4

Match Notes:
Washington 18-10; National ranking #53
UCLA 13-12; National ranking #46
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3,2); Singles (1,6,2,3,4,5)
Pac-12 Championships - Semifinal Round