LA JOLLA, Calif. – UC San Diego fell to 2-3 on the season after a home loss against LMU. The Tritons dropped the doubles point and the Lions clinched the match with three straight set wins in singles. The Tritons made up some ground with a win at No. 6, Yaron Guberman, and No. 3, Zach Pellouchoud, but ultimately fell 5-2.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
LMU took the doubles point with a win at No. 1, Pellouchoud and Prathinav Chunduru dropped their match 2-6. That left No. 2 and No. 3 still playing. Shortly after, the doubles match was clinched at No. 3, when Andrew Beceiro and Oliver Worth fell 4-6 to their opponents. No. 2, Abhinav Chunduru and Trevor Ngyuen were trailing 4-5 when LMU took the doubles point.
 
The Lions then topped the Tritons at No. 2, No. 5, and No. 1 in straight sets. On No. 6 Guberman gave the Tritons their first point in a three-set match against his opponent. Guberman took the first set 6-1, dropped the second 1-6, and claimed the third 6-4. No. 4 finished next after a lengthy two sets. A. Chunduru forced the second set into tiebreakers but dropped it 6-7 (7) after a hard-fought battle. Zach Pellouchoud finished the match with a comeback win, 1-6, 6-2, 7-5, over his opponent on No. 3.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Yaron Guberman played his first home match with the Tritons.
• This is the Tritons' eighth match up against the Lions in school history.

QUOTABLE
 "We had a tough day handling some of the strong play from LMU. As a young team self belief really matters and our confidence had moments we wavered," head coach Timmer Willing said. "Only experience in tough situations like today will help our progress to improve. I expect we will get much better as we gain that experience."
 
UP NEXT
The Tritons will host twice more before their next road trip. Friday, Jan. 30 Wofford visits. The match is set to begin at 3:30 p.m. On Saturday, Jan. 31, they will host Pomona-Pitzer, and the match is set to begin at 12 p.m. Admission to Northview Tennis Courts is free, but note the parking permits are required on the UC San Diego campus 24/7.
 
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 in NCAA Division I. The 24-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 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 39 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 NCAA Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.