HONOLULU -- The No. 71 UC Davis men's tennis team rallied to clinch its sixth consecutive victory, winning four of the six singles contests to post come-from-behind, 4-3, victory over host Hawai'i in the Big West Conference opener for both teams on Thursday afternoon at the UH Tennis Complex in Honolulu.

The Aggies improved to 13-3 overall, opening league play with a victory for the second straight year, and tied a season high with its sixth consecutive triumph. Thursday's win also marked the first for UC Davis over the Rainbow Warriors in five chances since making the jump to the Division I level.

Hawai'i fell to 5-7 overall and 0-1 with the loss, despite jumping out to an early lead on "Senior Day" after taking home wins at the No. 1 and No. 2 doubles positions to clinch the point and a 1-0 advantage.

After battling into the wee hours of the morning in last year's meeting in Sacramento when weather forced the two teams inside, the two programs would scrap it out once more in singles play, watching as five of the six contests went to three sets.

Sophomore Eli Whittle had the easiest day of all, dispatching Fabian Woehrl in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, at the No. 6 position to gain the Aggies' first point and tie the match at one apiece, before both teams settled in for a marathon finish.

Junior Brett Bacharach continued the rally, defeating Carter Lam, 2-6, 6-4, 6-2, to give UC Davis its first lead, and freshman Everett Maltby put Hawai'i on the ropes with his three-set, 6-3, 2-6, 6-2, win over Joakim Pinola at No. 5 to make it 3-1.

The Rainbow Warriors battled back with Chas Okamoto outlasting sophomore James Wade, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2, at the No. 2 spot to close to within a point. The loss snapped an eight-match winning streak for Wade, who had also been unbeaten (10-0) in three-set matches until Thursday.

With two matches remaining, sophomore Bryce McKelvie came through with the clincher at the No. 4 position against Marcel Chan, winning the first set and going up 5-3 in the second before falling, 7-5, to force a third-set tiebreaker, prevailing, 6-2, 5-7, 6-3, to clinch the match.

With the contest decided, Hawai'i took the final point of the day when Nils Schuhmann topped Alec Adamson, 6-7, 6-3, 10-7.

UC Davis closes out its trip to the islands on Friday (March 26) morning at 10 a.m. HT, taking on Hawai'i Pacific at the UH Tennis Complex. The Sharks are the No. 1-ranked team in Division II, entering the match a perfect 13-0 on the year.

NCAA MEN'S TENNIS
No. 71 UC Davis (13-3, 1-0) at Hawai'i (5-7, 0-1)
March 26, 2015, at Honolulu, Hawai'i (UH Tennis Complex)

No. 71 UC Davis 4, Hawai'i 3

DOUBLES
1. Carter Lam/Marcel Chan (UH) def. Alec Adamson / Adam Levie (UCD), 6-2
2. Joakim Pinola/Nils Schuhmann (UH) def. Brett Bacharach / Bryce McKelvie (UCD), 6-2
3. James Wade / Tommy Lam (UCD) vs. Chas Okamoto/Kula Companion (UH), unfinished

SINGLES
1. Nils Schuhmann (UH) def. Alec Adamson (UCD), 6-7, 6-3, 10-7
2. Chas Okamoto (UH) def. James Wade (UCD), 6-2, 3-6, 6-2
3. Brett Bacharach (UCD) def. Carter Lam (UH), 2-6, 6-4, 6-2
4. Bryce McKelvie (UCD) def. Marcel Chan (UH), 6-2, 5-7, 6-3
5. Everett Maltby (UCD) def. Joakim Pinola (UH), 6-3, 2-6, 6-2
6. Eli Whittle (UCD) def. Fabian Woehrl (UH), 6-3, 6-4

Order of finish: 6, 3, 5, 2, 4*, 1... *denotes match clincher