DAVIS, Calif. — After a handful of time delays, a canceled match, a location change due to darkness, and lights turning off mid-point, the UC Davis men's tennis team emerged victorious in both matches played in their season and home opener on Saturday, giving the team its best start (2-0) since the 2007-08 season (3-0).

Due to the forecasted weather, all coaches agreed ahead of time to change the dual format to play singles first, and only play doubles in the event of a 3-3 tie. The match between Pacific and Fresno State was canceled and rescheduled to a later date, allowing UC Davis to play the doubleheader. 

UC DAVIS DEF. PACIFIC, 4-2

In a match that was originally scheduled for 8:30AM, the Aggies and the Tigers took to the courts for a noon start to open each team's spring season. Pacific got out to a quick lead, taking the first game on every court except for No. 6 singles, where sophomore Arjith Jayaraman kept his momentum from the get-go to record a 6-2, 6-2 victory for the first point for UC Davis — kicking off an Aggie comeback. With the team score at 1-2, newcomer Nil Giraldez showcased his grit in a tough 6-4, 7-5 win over a Pacific junior, John Lieu, in his debut as an Aggie at No. 3 singles.

Once tied, all attention fell upon the two remaining matches, where Pacific had won the first set on each court. 

Sophomore Chethan Swanson dropped the first set 4-6, but rebounded quickly to take the second 6-2. Sophomore Ivan Thamma gathered momentum throughout the second set, closing with an ace to force a third set. Both matches saw Swanson and Thamma break serve multiple times, with Swanson winning 6-3, and Thamma clinching the match for the Aggies 6-3 in the third set. 

UC DAVIS DEF. FRESNO STATE, 4-3

In the Aggies' second match of the day, what looked like a quick start for UC Davis turned into a battle that would last nearly five hours and a location change. Junior David Goulak jumped to an early lead over Fresno State's Mantas Bugailiskis, taking the first set 6-1, while Thamma, Scemanenco, Swanson, and Jayaraman all led in their respective matches. Swanson was the next Aggie to earn a set, recording a 6-4 score against Cagatay Soke, with Thamma quickly following suit. 

In his spring debut for the Aggies, sophomore Daniel Landa trailed his opponent, freshman Cem Erturk, throughout most of the match, but would earn a late break of serve to win the first set in a tiebreaker, 7-6(4). 

From this point, the matches got tougher, but the Aggies settled in for the grind. Goulak posted a 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 win to give UC Davis its first point, tying the score 1-1 with Fresno State. Landa followed suit not long afterwards to give UC Davis the 2-1 lead, after his 7-6(4), 7-5 win.

When the match became tied at 2-2, a similar situation took place as the Pacific match from earlier in the day: Thamma and Swanson were the remaining two matches on, and both were in third sets. Thamma however, was unable to record a win, leaving the match to Swanson, as a win would tie the team score at 3-3 and force doubles play.

With Swanson on serve at 5-4 in the third set, the match was postponed due to darkness, and moved to Stonegate Country Club to be finished under the lights. Once there, Soke and Swanson each held serve to force a tiebreaker to determine the match. Swanson got the early lead, maintained the mini-break, and consolidated a 7-4 tiebreak win with a huge serve to keep the Aggies alive.

Once in the doubles play, Fresno State took the No. 2 doubles match 6-2, to put them in the lead for the match. However, Thamma and Goulak at No. 1 and Landa and freshman Alex Scemanenco at No. 3 were battling for their sets, and were at 4-4, and 3-4, respectively, when the facility's light timer expired, plunging the match into darkness, and postponing play for another 15 minutes while the lights were turned back on.

Once on the court, Landa and Scemanenco responded with a break and a hold to move up 5-4, and Thamma and Goulak played clutch tennis to follow in a similar fashion, with a hold and a break to take the lead 6-5. Thamma served out the match, 7-5, to even the doubles score to one match apiece, turning all the attention to court three, where Landa and Scemanenco were about to begin a tiebreaker at 6-6 to determine the day's dual.

After a tough singles day, Scemanenco put the team on his back and played clutch tennis to jump out to a 4-1 lead, bolstered by a laser forehand at the net player by Landa to go up 5-1. 

In the final two points of the match, Scemanenco took a deep breath, toed the line to serve at 5-2, and fired in two first serves that were unreturnable to seal the victory for the Aggies. Today's win over the Bulldogs is just the second in program history, with both wins happening under head coach Eric Steidlmayer's reign. 

Steidlmayer had a lot to be proud of today, with several stepping up when they needed to to get the job done:

"To see the spirit all day was fantastic. We saw a lot of new players get in there and do battle. Nil Giraldez did an unbelievable job and had great spirit. We saw Daniel Landa come up huge, and Alex Scemanenco come up huge, winning 7-6 in third doubles to clinch the match. Just a neat finish and a wonderful day for Aggie tennis."

In a tough opening week schedule, the Aggies are slated to travel south to #7 UCLA on Wednesday, Jan. 16, for a 2:30 PM clash at the Los Angeles Tennis Center, before returning to Marya Welch Tennis Center for a Friday afternoon match against Eastern Washington at 1 PM, and a doubleheader against Causeway rival Sacramento State at 9 AM and Holy Names at 12 PM.

Pacific (0-1) at UC Davis (2-0)
January 12, 2019 // Davis, Calif. (Marya Welch Tennis Center)

UC Davis 4, Pacific 2

SINGLES
1. Ivan Thamma (UCD) def. Ross Watson (UOP) 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
2. Philip Hjorth (UOP) def. David Goulak, 6-3, 6-0
3. Nil Giraldez (UCD) def. John Lieu (UOP), 6-4, 7-5
4. Tadiwa Chinamo (UOP) def. Alex Scemanenco (UCD), 6-2, 6-1
5. Chethan Swanson (UCD) def. Akram El Sallaly (UOP), 4-6, 6-1, 6-3
6. Arjith Jayaraman (UCD) def. Josef Southcombe (UOP), 6-2, 6-2

Order of Finish: 4, 2, 6, 3, 5, 1*

Fresno State (0-1) at UC Davis (2-0)
January 12, 2019 // Davis Calif. (Marya Welch Tennis Center, Stonegate Country Club)

UC Davis 4, Fresno State 3

SINGLES
1. Zdenek Derkas (FSU) def. Ivan Thamma (UCD), 3-6, 6-2, 6-1
2. David Goulak (UCD) def. Mantas Bugailiskis (FSU) 6-1, 3-6, 6-3
3. Angus Bradshaw (FSU) def. Alex Scemanenco (UCD) 6-3, 6-3
4. Chethan Swanson (UCD) def. Cagatay Soke (FSU), 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(4)
5. Henrique Osorio (FSU) def. Arjith Jayaraman (UCD) 7-6(4), 7-5
6. Daniel Landa (UCD) def. Cem Erturk (FSU), 7-6(4), 7-5

Order of Finish: 3, 2, 6, 5, 1, 4*

DOUBLES
1. Ivan Thamma/David Goulak (UCD) def. Angus Bradshaw/Mantas Bugailiskis (FSU), 7-5
2. Cagatay Soke/Cem Erturk (FSU) def. Chethan Swanson/Dariush Jalali (UCD), 6-2
3. Daniel Landa/Alex Scemanenco (UCD) def. Jeremy Moser/Zdenek Derkas(FSU), 7-6(2)

Order of Finish: 2, 1, 3*

ABOUT UC DAVIS
Providing a small-town community feel while providing a world-class academic experience, UC Davis is home to more than 37,000 students and centrally located between San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, and the Napa Valley. The No. 5-ranked public university in the nation, according to the Wall Street Journal and Times Higher Education, offers nearly 100 graduate programs and more than 100 academic majors across four colleges and six professional schools, ranking among the world and nation's best in numerous disciplines, including veterinary science, agriculture, and plant and animal programs.

AGGIE EVO
Established during the 2017-18 academic year, the Aggie EVO System is UC Davis Athletics' investment in the primary mission of preparing student-athletes for a successful "launch" after graduation. Thanks to a collaboration of alumni, university resources, corporate partners, coaches and Student-Athlete Outcomes staff, all Aggies are guided over four years to acquire the skills, knowledge, opportunities and tools to better know and navigate the "World of Work" after graduating from UC Davis. Follow the Aggie EVO system on Twitter and Instagram at @AggieEVO.