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Around the League: Tennis vies for top Pac-12 spots, beach volleyball enters conference play

Freshman Megan Muret and junior Izzy Carey post a 24-1 record on court five and an overall record of 28-5 this year, good for best on the team. The duo has helped lead the Bruins to the top rank in the nation. (Keila Mayberry/Daily Bruin staff)

By Ryan Smith and Angie Forburger

April 18, 2018 10:17 p.m.

Tennis
Angie Forburger, assistant Sports editor

With the Pac-12 Tournament looming, the race is on for the top spot in the conference tennis standings.

UCLA men’s tennis (22-2, 7-0 Pac-12) has already claimed the No. 1 seed for the tournament after the Bruins defeated Arizona State and Arizona last weekend to remain undefeated in the Pac-12. If it gets a win over Utah on Friday, UCLA will secure the outright conference title.

The No. 2 and No. 3 seeds are currently held by Stanford (18-2, 5-1) and USC (14-7, 5-2) respectively, with both teams recording five Pac-12 wins. The Cardinal hold the edge after taking down the Trojans twice this season.

For the women, Stanford (14-3, 8-0) and UCLA (17-4, 8-1) are atop the rankings. Stanford currently has the lead, still undefeated in Pac-12 play. The Bruins are not far behind, with their only conference loss coming from the Cardinal. Stanford will face California on Friday, looking to claim the Pac-12 title. UCLA will battle crosstown rival USC on Saturday.

Behind the top-two teams, Arizona State (14-6, 6-3) and California (11-7, 6-3) are both 6-3 going into the final week of the regular season. The Sun Devils will face the Arizona Wildcats on Saturday and California will conclude against Stanford on Friday.

The Pac-12 championships for men’s and women’s tennis will take place April 25-28 in Ojai, California.

Baseball
Ryan Smith, assistant Sports editor

With five weeks remaining in the season, three Pac-12 schools continue to fight their ways up the rankings.

No. 13 UCLA baseball (22-10, 11-4 Pac-12) catapulted up four spots, one week after it moved from 20 to 17. However, an 8-1 loss to UC Irvine on Tuesday night at Jackie Robinson Stadium was not a good look for a team that just cracked the top 15.

The loss also paved the way for the No. 2 Stanford Cardinal (27-5, 9-3 Pac-12) to overtake the Bruins as the leader in the Pac-12 standings.

Stanford went a perfect 4-0 last week, retaining its spot behind No. 1 Florida as the No. 2 team in the country. Stanford will travel to Tucson, Arizona, this weekend for a series against Arizona (23-12, 6-6 Pac-12).

No. 7 Oregon State (26-6, 7-5 Pac-12) is sitting in fourth place within the conference, but still managed to jump two spots in the national rankings after a pair of victories at Missouri State over the weekend. The Beavers will begin a three-game series Thursday with the Oregon Ducks, who they have not yet faced this season.

Washington (17-15, 8-4) strung together a 3-1 record last week. The Huskies are ahead of the Beavers in the Pac-12 standings, but still have not been included in the top 25.

Washington will travel to Berkeley this weekend for a three-game set against California (21-13, 7-8 Pac-12).

Beach volleyball
Angie Forburger, assistant Sports editor

Pac-12 beach volleyball is gearing up for its third conference tournament.

Nine Pac-12 schools field beach volleyball teams, with five of those teams occupying a spot in the national rankings.

UCLA (30-3) ranks No. 1 in the nation, reaching a record-high 25 straight wins after a win at Stanford on April 8. USC (22-10) is ranked No. 5 and has won five of its last six dual matches. Stanford (16-10), California (20-6) and Arizona (17-10) sit at No. 12, No. 13 and No. 14, respectively.

USC has already concluded its regular season matches. UCLA will face Long Beach State, and Stanford and California will play each other in their final games this weekend. Arizona still has two duals remaining against New Mexico and Utah.

The Pac-12 championships are slated for April 26-28 at Stanford, California.

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Ryan Smith | Alumnus
Smith joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2016 and contributed until he graduated in 2020. He was the Sports editor for the 2018-2019 academic year, an assistant Sports editor for the 2017-2018 academic year and spent time on the football, men's basketball, women's basketball, men's water polo, baseball, men's golf and women's golf beats.
Smith joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2016 and contributed until he graduated in 2020. He was the Sports editor for the 2018-2019 academic year, an assistant Sports editor for the 2017-2018 academic year and spent time on the football, men's basketball, women's basketball, men's water polo, baseball, men's golf and women's golf beats.
Forburger joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2016 and contributed until she graduated in 2020. She was the Editor in Chief for the 2019-2020 academic year and an assistant Sports editor for the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 academic years. Forburger spent time on the women's volleyball, gymnastics, softball, swim & dive and rowing beats.
Forburger joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2016 and contributed until she graduated in 2020. She was the Editor in Chief for the 2019-2020 academic year and an assistant Sports editor for the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 academic years. Forburger spent time on the women's volleyball, gymnastics, softball, swim & dive and rowing beats.
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