Coach Billy Martin said his team wasn’t the favorite heading into Monday’s home opener.

But the Bruins sure came close.

No. 20 UCLA men’s tennis (1-1) fell to No. 16 San Diego (2-0) by a score of 4-3 at the Los Angeles Tennis Center, succumbing to a nail-biting defeat in its second dual-match of the year.

“I was, believe it or not, pretty proud of the way we came out and battled,” Martin said. “We were going to have to come out and play a hell of a match to beat them, and we almost did.”

With the match tied at three points, the Bruins’ fate was thrust into the hands of Emon van Loben Sels. Down 5-1 in the third set, the redshirt sophomore rallied to 5-4 but ultimately fell 6-4, 5-7, 6-4.

Martin said he was most disappointed with senior Alexander Hoogmartens – who was swept by Adrien Berrut in straight sets 7-5, 6-4.

“Alex just did not play a very good match,” Martin said. “I probably would have thought that’s the one match I thought I could count on.”

It wasn’t all doom and gloom for the Bruins, though.

Facing three Torero tandems ranked in the nation’s top 100, the Bruins secured their first doubles point of the season.

Although No. 10 junior Aadarsh Tripathi and Hoogmartens dropped their set to No. 1 Oliver Tarvet and Stian Klaassen 6-4, the rest of the Bruins’ doubles lineup picked them up.

Van Loben Sels and sophomore Spencer Johnson defeated No. 88 Iiro Vasa and Savriyan Danilov 6-3, while freshmen Rudy Quan and Kaylan Bigun sealed the deal with their first career doubles win – a 7-6(2) victory over No. 72 Berrut and Blake Kasday.

Quan and Bigun have known each other since they were 12, but their inaugural campaign in Westwood is the first time they’ve competed as doubles partners.

Though Martin said the pair looked nervous against UC Irvine in UCLA’s season opener Friday, Quan said it only better prepared them for Monday.

The Thousand Oaks, California, local came through again in singles. Down 3-0 in the first set, Quan rattled off six games in a row to secure the frame before defeating Vasa in straight sets 6-3, 7-6(5).

“Took me just a little bit to get my heart rate down from doubles,” Quan said. “I’m happy I was able to figure it out. I was finally able to hit my shots.”

For a second consecutive match, Tripathi defeated his opponent in straight sets – taking down Neo Niedner 6-3, 6-1 – joining Quan as the only Bruins to do so.

“In the fall, I really worked on making sure my game didn’t go up and down – really staying levelheaded,” Tripathi said. “The last few years that hasn’t really happened.”

Bigun trailed 2-0 in his third set but was unable to finish the match due to cramps. However, Martin added that the freshman should recover well before the Bruins’ next match Saturday.

“We’re going to be better,” Martin said. “Just need the guys to stay positive.”