SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Despite missing one of their best doubles players, the UC San Diego men's tennis team earned their first doubles point since March 26 before ultimately falling to the 59^th-ranked Cal Poly Mustangs on the road Sunday, 4-1.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: #59 Cal Poly 4, UC San Diego 1
Records: UC San Diego 4-19 (1-4 Big West); #59 Cal Poly 14-4 (5-0 Big West)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Even with one half of their typical No. 1 doubles partnership, sophomore Eric Silberman, out of action on Sunday, the Tritons won the doubles point in come-from-behind fashion. After the Mustangs opened play with a win at No. 3 doubles, junior Phillip Lan and freshman Pelayo Rodriguez leveled things with a win at No. 2 before juniors William Lan and Daniel Traxler clinched the point with a win at No. 1, their fourth win together.
 
However, the Tritons' singles play was not as strong as their doubles play, and the Mustangs collected the four wins they needed to take the match at Nos. 1, 3, 5, and 6. Phillip Lan did win a set for UC San Diego at No. 2, and both Rodriguez and sophomore Jett Cole made their opponents work extra hard at 4 and 5; each extended one of their sets to a 7-5 margin.

RESULTS
Doubles:

1. Daniel Traxler/William Lan (UCSD) def. Colter Smith/Bastiaan Westrate (CP), 6-4
2. Phillip Lan/Pelayo Rodriguez (UCSD) def. Joe Leather/Hendrik Inno (CP), 6-1
3. Noah Berry/Fernando Fonseca (CP) def. Jett Cole/Zach Ermert (UCSD), 6-1

Order of finish: 3, 2, 1
 
Singles

1. Noah Berry (CP) def. Daniel Traxler (UCSD), 6-1, 6-0
2. Phillip Lan (UCSD) vs. Joe Leather (CP), 6-4, 0-6, 2-3, dnf
3. Colter Smith (CP) def. Zach Ermert (UCSD), 6-0, 6-1
4. Pelayo Rodriguez (UCSD) vs. Fernando Fonseca (CP), 5-7, 1-4, dnf
5. Bastiaan Westrate (CP) def. Jett Cole (UCSD), 6-1, 7-5
6. Ben Keyser (CP) def. Sahm Irvine (UCSD), 6-0, 6-2

Order of finish: 1, 3, 6, 5

QUOTABLE
"We started strong in doubles and caught them a little off guard, played well and solid so we got good leads to get the match started," Head Coach Timmer Willing said. "Singles started disastrously. We got down early on five of six singles, putting us deep in a hole. Phillip (Lan) was the only one to get a lead and get the first set while Pelayo (Rodriguez) and Jett (Cole) were able to work back into the match. Ultimately it was too deep to dig out of."
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Sunday was the first match that Zach Ermert partnered someone other than Eric Silberman in doubles since the season opener against Nevada on Jan. 16
• William Lan's win at No. 1 doubles with Daniel Traxler is his highest positioned win at UC San Diego in either doubles or singles

UP NEXT
UC San Diego has a 13-day break before their next match, their Big West Conference finale, on the road against UC Davis on April 23. First serve in Davis is set for 11 a.m.
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.