M. Tennis: Cerritos dominates North/South Tournament

Cerritos dominated the North/South Tournament with three wins
Cerritos dominated the North/South Tournament with three wins

In their three matches at the North/South Tournament, the Cerritos College men's tennis team recorded three wins over the weekend. The Falcons (19-1) opened with a 7-0 win over Foothill College on Friday and followed that with wins over Fresno City College (9-0) and American River College (6-3) on Saturday. The team will travel to El Camino College on Tuesday for a South Coast Conference match.

Cerritos vs. Foothill: The Falcons defeated the Owls (6-3) quickly, thanks to three dominant doubles matches and four straight set singles wins. With Cerritos in control, two of the singles matches were not finished. At the top half of the singles ladder, the sophomore-laden Cerritos team recorded convincing wins. Sasha Krasnov (School 106, Ukraine) earned a 6-3, 6-0 win, while Nikita Katsnelson (Odessa Gymnasium No. 1, Ukraine) came away with a 6-2, 6-2 victory. The two also teamed for an 8-2 doubles win to remain undefeated on the season. Aleks Trifunovic (Katrinelunds Gymnasium, Sweden) disposed of Julio Ochoa, 6-4, 6-0 and teamed with sophomore James Zhang (Shenzhen Luohu Foreign Language School, China) for an 8-1 doubles victory. The team's other doubles win was turned in by freshmen Bruno Duarte (Centro Educacional Rogêdo, Brazil) and Marcos Paulo Silvestre (Colégio Tiradentes, Brazil) by the score of 8-1, with freshman Carlos Mendez (Instituto de Educación Secundaria Ies El Palo, Spain) finishing his #5 singles match with a 6-2, 6-1 score.

SINGLES
Sasha Krasnov (CERR) def. Joseph Greco (FOOT), 6-3, 6-0
Nikita Katsnelson (CERR) def. Daniel Kim (FOOT), 6-2, 6-2
Aleks Trifunovic (CERR) def. Julio Ochoa (FOOT), 6-4, 6-0
Bruno Duarte (CERR) vs. Milton Parra (FOOT), Did Not Play
Carlos Mendez (CERR) def. Shahand Esmaeli (FOOT), 6-2, 6-1
James Zhang (CERR) led Kristian Calayang (FOOT), 5-1 (Did Not Finish)

DOUBLES
Sasha Krasnov/Nikita Katsnelson (CERR) def. Joseph Greco/Daniel Kim (FOOT), 8-2
Aleks Trifunovic/James Zhang (CERR) def. Julio Ochoa/Milton Parra (FOOT), 8-1
Bruno Duarte/Marcos Paulo Silvestre (CERR) def. Shahand Esmaeli/Kristian Calayang (FOOT), 8-1


Cerritos vs. Fresno City: Resting most of their starters, the Falcons swept past the host Rams (1-4). Playing in the #1 singles position, Duarte swept Keinan Clewis, 6-0, 6-0, while sophomore Henry Ayesiga (Malezi School, Kenya) earned a 6-1, 6-2 victory playing in the #2 spot. Freshmen Biel Roca Carreras (Iguolada, Spain) and Blaisure Guerrero (El Rancho HS) were inserted into the lineup and each recorded wins. Roca Cerreras earned a 6-0, 6-2 win in the #3 spot on the ladder, while Guerrero held on for a 6-2, 4-6, 10-6 win. Doubles consisted of an 8-0 win by Roca Carreras and Mendez, while Duarte and Silvestre moved into the top spot and earned an 8-3 win.

SINGLES
Bruno Duarte (CERR) def. Kienan Clewis (FCC), 6-0, 6-0
Henry Ayesiga (CERR) def. Jade Yang (FCC), 6-1, 6-2
Biel Roca Carreras (CERR) def. Rick Morrison (FCC), 6-0, 6-2
Marcos Paulo Silvestre (CERR) def. Nick Morrison (FCC), 6-0, 3-0 (retired)
Blaisure Guerrero (CERR) def. Adrian Caballero (FCC), 6-2, 4-6, 10-6
Carlos Mendez (CERR) win by default

DOUBLES
Burno Duarte/Marcos Paulo Silvestre (CERR) def. Kienan Clewis/Jade Yang (FCC), 8-3
Biel Roca Carreras/Carlos Mendez (CERR) def. Rick Morrison/Adrian Caballero (FCC), 8-0
Henry Ayesiga/Blaisure Guerrero (CERR) win by default


Cerritos vs. American River: Taking on the best team in Northern California, the Falcons benefited from the bottom half of the singles ladder to secure the 6-3 win over the Beavers (9-1). Suffering their first loss of the season, the doubles pair of Krasnov and Katsnelson had their hands full in singles play, as well. Krasnov held on for a 6-4, 3-6, 10-4 win, while Katsnelson was unable to finish off Tam Duong and dropped a 6-2, 2-6, 8-10 decision. But it was the play of the final four singles matches that locked down the win. Trifunovic, who teamed with Zhang for an 8-1 doubles win, posted a 6-4, 6-2 victory in the #3 singles match, with Zhang earning a 6-1, 6-4 win at #5. Duarte and Silvestre pulled out an 8-5 doubles win to give Cerritos a 2-1 team lead after doubles play, while Duarte earned a 6-1, 6-2 singles victory. Mendez also played well at #6 with a 6-1, 6-2 win.

SINGLES
Sasha Krasnov (CERR) def. Cody Duong (ARC), 6-4, 3-6, 10-4
Tam Duong (ARC) def. Nikita Katsnelson (CERR), 2-6, 6-2, 10-8
Aleks Trifunovic (CERR) def. Mikey Vizcarra (ARC), 6-4, 6-2
Bruno Duarte (CERR) def. Neville Cooper (ARC), 6-1, 6-2
James Zhang (CERR) def. Andy Vang (ARC), 6-1, 6-4
Carlos Mendez (CERR) def. Pele Gibson (ARC), 6-1, 6-2

DOUBLES
Cody Duong/Tam Duong (ARC) def. Sasha Krasnov/Nikita Katsnelson (CERR), 8-3
Aleks Trifunovic/James Zhang (CERR) def. Andy Vang/Eric DeRomas (ARC), 8-1
Bruno Duarte/Marcos Paulo Silvestre (CERR) def. Mikey Vizcarra/Mikey Cooper (ARC), 8-5