With their 7-2 win over visiting Mt. San Antonio College on Tuesday, the Cerritos College men's tennis team remained undefeated in South Coast Conference play. The Falcons (19-3, 6-0) will lock down their second straight 20-win season with a victory over host El Camino College at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday.
The day started with Cerritos winning two of the three doubles matches, as the top pair of freshmen Oleksandr Krasnov (School 106, Ukraine) and Nikita Katsnelson (Odessa Gymnasium No. 1, Ukraine) worked together for an 8-4 win, while the tandem of freshman James Zhang (Shenzhen Luohu Foreign Language School, China) and Aleks Trifunovic (Katrinelunds Gymnasium, Sweden) secured an 8-5 win.
In singles, the Falcons played without sophomore Agustin Lombardi (E.S.D.S., Argentina), but received a great effort from freshman Eliot Dota (Paris, France), who earned a 7-6, 6-1 win in the #5 position. Sophomore Edgar Munoz (Paramount HS) fought back after losing the first set at #6, 0-6 to post the win when he defeated Phillip Beniga, 6-4, 6-3 in the next two sets.
Most of the day's drama came at the top of the ladder, as the Mounties inserted their top player, Ron Kang (12.26 UTR rating) into the #2 spot on the ladder, while their #1 position was held by Erik Martinez (9.69 UTR). A player's Universal Tennis Rating is based on wins and losses against opponents, as well as how many matches in which a player has competed.
The top singles player for Cerritos is Krasnov (12.27) and he made quick work of Martinez, while Katsnelson (11.74) was defeated by Kang, 6-7, 2-6. The Falcons also received straight set wins by Zhang (6-2, 6-0) and sophomore Mark Antoniuk (W. 124 School, Russia), 6-0, 6-4.
SINGLES
Oleksandr Krasnov (CERR) def. Erik Martinez (MSAC), 6-1, 6-2
Ron Kang (MSAC) def. Nikita Katsnelson (CERR), 7-6, 6-2
James Zhang (CERR) def. Kenny Sakata (MSAC), 6-2, 6-0
Mark Antoniuk (CERR) def. Jeffrey Alidina (MSAC), 6-0, 6-4
Eliot Dota (CERR) def. Ismael Rodriguez (MSAC), 7-6, 6-1
Edgar Munoz (CERR) def. Phillip Beniga (MSAC), 0-6, 6-4, 6-3
DOUBLES
Oleksandr Krasnov/Nikita Katsnelson (CERR) def. Erik Martinez/Jeffrey Alidina (MSAC), 8-4
James Zhang/Aleks Trifunovic (CERR) def. Ron Kang/Kenny Sakata (MSAC), 8-5
Ismael Rodriguez/Kimlong Phan (MSAC) def. Mark Antoniuk/Agustin Lombardi (CERR), 8-4
October 3, 2016
M. Tennis: Falcons win doubles title at ITA Tournament
April 24, 2016
M. Tennis: Doubles team loses in state semifinals
April 23, 2016
M. Tennis: Singles season comes to an end with semis loss
April 12, 2016
M. Tennis: Tough win over Ventura sends team to SoCal Finals
April 10, 2016
M. Tennis: Krasnov wins conference singles title
April 5, 2016
M. Tennis: Playoff win sets up showdown with Ventura
April 3, 2016
M. Tennis: Team seeded #2 for SoCal Team Playoffs
March 29, 2016
M. Tennis: Win over Ventura all but locks down #2 seed
March 24, 2016
M. Tennis: Falcons beat El Camino for 20th win of the season
March 22, 2016
M. Tennis: Conference win keeps team undefeated
March 17, 2016
M. Tennis: Loss to NCAA DIII Amherst part of long week
March 15, 2016
M. Tennis: Team records Golden Match against Victor Valley
March 14, 2016
M. Tennis: Team posts 9-0 win over NCAA DIII RPI
March 8, 2016
M. Tennis: Cerritos drops 6-3 match to NCAA DIII school
March 3, 2016
M. Tennis: Falcons lock down conference lead with win
March 1, 2016
M. Tennis: Win improves winning streak to 10 matches
February 26, 2016
M. Tennis: Second straight 9-0 win for the Falcons
February 25, 2016
M. Tennis: Falcons post sweep of El Camino, 9-0
February 23, 2016
M. Tennis: Win over Mt. SAC keeps team in first place
February 16, 2016
M. Tennis: Falcons sweep past Saddleback, 9-0
February 13, 2016
M. Tennis: Hard-fought win over Whittier College ends long week
February 12, 2016
M. Tennis: Falcons shut out San Diego Mesa
February 11, 2016
M. Tennis: Conference season opens with 9-0 win
February 9, 2016
M. Tennis: Shutout win improves team's record to 4-1
February 5, 2016
M. Tennis: Team rebounds for 9-0 win
February 4, 2016
M. Tennis: Cerritos suffers loss to top-ranked Irvine Valley
February 2, 2016
M. Tennis: Cerritos sweeps past Riverside
January 28, 2016
M. Tennis: Falcons open season with 9-0 win