Young, inexperienced Bruin men’s tennis seeks to build on this year’s success in future seasons
Rising sophomore Clay Thompson and the young Bruins will return with several key players.
By Rohan Popat
June 2, 2011 12:45 a.m.
On the edge of a string. That’s the way the UCLA tennis team survived throughout the 2010-2011 season, as it yo-yoed through a myriad of ups and downs with one of the youngest and most inexperienced rosters in recent memory.
Coach Billy Martin called the group “one of the most inexperienced teams” he’s coached, and the Bruins fought and clawed for everything they got.
The consistency wasn’t always there, but the team showed immense grit and glimpses of greatness for the future. The Bruins reached the round of 16 in the NCAA Championships and had several key chances in a thriller with Baylor to advance, but came up just short in a 4-3 loss.
While this season ended on a heartbreaking note, the future looks bright.
“Next year is our year,” freshman Clay Thompson said. Thompson was one of the major contributors on this year’s squad, and, along with fellow freshmen Adrien Puget and Daniel Kosakowski, forms a nucleus that should remain intact for the next several years.
While the Bruins do lose two key seniors in All-Pac-10 players Amit Inbar and Holden Seguso, they return their top player from last year in senior Nick Meister, who sat out this season on a medical redshirt after having surgery earlier in the year.
In addition to Meister’s return, the Bruins welcome the No. 1 recruit in the country in Marcos Giron, who just finished up competing at the French Open in the junior singles division.
With the additions to the team, there will certainly be healthy competition for spots in the singles lineup, with Kosakowski, Puget and Thompson all returning after excellent freshman seasons and sophomore Maxime Tabatruong, who has been a staple in the singles lineup, fighting for spots.
“The energy around the locker room is so great,” Thompson said. “We are all so excited for summer, and everyone is ready to prepare for what’s going to be an amazing season.”
Martin, the calm realist, looked back on the season with fond memories.
“Starting three freshmen in the top four spots in the singles lineup, I wasn’t optimistic at the start of the year,” Martin said.
“I feel it was a very successful year for us, given that we lost our top three players from the year before,” he added.
Kosakowski, who had a breakout year in becoming the face of UCLA tennis, constantly faced some of the toughest competition in the country, and stood toe-to-toe with the very best.
“It was a great year,” Kosakowski said. “I couldn’t have asked anything more from my first year of college tennis.”
Throughout the year, the Bruins, despite a high national ranking, were seen as underdogs in matches against elite teams.
The Bruins displayed grit and toughness all year, which is something that this young squad realizes it will have to carry forward if it wants to be successful.
“We have to fight for everything next year, just like we did this year,” Thompson said. “We need that same passion and intensity, which, combined with our skill, is going to get us wins.”
In one of his most challenging seasons as a coach, given the youth of his squad, Martin summed it up by saying it was a very gratifying experience.
“It was a very fun year and a good time with these guys,” he said. “Now we need to work hard over summer, improve and look toward next year.”
