SAN DIEGO – The No. 44 BYU men’s tennis team dropped a close 4-3 decision to reigning 2011 WCC Champion No. 19 San Diego on Saturday in its last road match of the season.

"We had a great effort by our No. 1 and No. 3 doubles teams along with Spencer Smith and Francis Sargeant in singles," BYU coach Brad Pearce said. "We were in position for an inspired win because of some great efforts, but fell short by just one match. San Diego is a very good team and they deserve credit for the win."

The Cougars (11-7, 1-2 WCC) started the match strong, grabbing the doubles point over the Toreros (12-5, 3-0 WCC). BYU senior Georgy Batrakov and sophomore Patrick Kawka topped Patrick Pohlmann and Clarke Spinosa on Court 1, 8-5, before San Diego evened the score by edging out junior Spencer Smith and freshman Francis Sargeant, 8-6.

With the doubles point up for grabs on Court 3, BYU's freshman Keaton Cullimore and senior Michael Eraso battled back and forth with Ciaran Fitzgerald and Victor Pugliese before coming away with an 8-6 win.

The Toreros won the first two singles matches to take a 2-1 lead. No. 112 Thibaut Visy defeated BYU’s Cullimore 6-0, 6-2 on Court 4 before Eraso fell 6-2, 6-4 on Court 5.

BYU and San Diego exchanged the next two wins. Smith put up a straight set victory over his Court 3 opponent (6-2, 6-2) to tie the match score, 2-2, before the Toreros recorded their own win. Playing at the No. 2 singles position, No. 81 Pohlmann beat Kawka 6-4, 6-3.

In a three-set showdown on Court 1, No. 68 Nikola Bubnic and No. 45 Batrakov split sets before Bubnic came away with the win, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, to earn the fourth point for San Diego and the match win.

The Cougars return home for their last four matches of the regular season. Next week, BYU hosts conference opponents Gonzaga and Portland, Friday and Saturday, respectively. 

#19 San Diego – 4
#44 BYU - 3

Singles competition
1. #68 Nikola Bubnic (USD) def. #45 Georgy Batrakov (BYU) 6-4, 3-6, 6-3
2. #81 Patrick Pohlmann (USD) def. Patrick Kawka (BYU) 6-4, 6-3
3. Spencer Smith (BYU) def. Clarke Spinosa (USD) 6-2, 6-2
4. #112 Thibaut Visy (USD) def. Keaton Cullimore (BYU) 6-0, 6-2
5. Victor Pugliese (USD) def. Michael Eraso (BYU) 6-2, 6-4
6. Francis Sargeant (BYU) def. Ciaran Fitzgerald (USD) 6-2, 7-6(4)

Doubles competition
1. Georgy Batrakov/Patrick Kawka (BYU) def. Patrick Pohlmann/Clarke Spinosa (USD) 8-5
2. Nikola Bubnic/Thibaut Visy (USD) def. Spencer Smith/Francis Sargeant (BYU) 8-6
3. Keaton Cullimore/Michael Eraso (BYU) def. Ciaran Fitzgerald/Victor Pugliese (USD) 8-6

Match Notes:
BYU 11-7 (1-2 WCC); National ranking #44
San Diego 12-5 (3-0 WCC); National ranking #19
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (4,5,3,2,1,6)

PROVO, Utah – Following a tough 4-3 loss to then-No. 34 Santa Clara, the No. 44 BYU men’s tennis team will meet conference foes Saint Mary’s and No. 19 University of San Diego this weekend.

“After the loss to Santa Clara, I told the guys I was as proud of this team and their efforts as I’ve been of any team in a loss,” BYU coach Brad Pearce said. “We had a lot of things stacked against us in that match. Our guys competed hard and have nothing to hang their heads about. We’re looking forward to facing a good Saint Mary’s team and a tough San Diego team.”

The Cougars (10-6, 0-1 WCC) recorded two wins over ranked players in the loss. Playing at the No. 1 singles position, No. 45 Georgy Batrakov defeated No. 133 Kyle Dandan 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 while freshman Keaton Cullimore topped No. 150 Tom Pham on Court 4. 

Sophomore Patrick Kawka moved to a team-best 11-4 dual singles record after recording a win over Santa Clara’s Nicolas Vinel. Kawka has the second-best season record at 22-9, behind junior Spencer Smith (24-7).

The Gaels are 4-11 on the season and 0-3 in conference, with a 4-3 loss to Portland last weekend.

No. 19 San Diego has three ranked singles players in No. 69 Nikola Bubnic, No. 81 Patrick Pohlmann and No. 112 Thibaut Visy. Bubnic leads the team with a 16-5 overall singles record and an 11-4 mark in dual singles. The Toreros (11-5, 2-0 WCC) wrapped up their first weekend of conference action with back-to-back road wins against Portland (6-1) and Gonzaga (6-0) last weekend.

The match against Saint Mary’s will begin at 2 p.m. PDT Friday in Moraga, Calif. BYU then travels to San Diego to take on the Toreros Saturday at noon PDT.

The Cougars challenge their last four opponents at home to finish out the season. BYU hosts Gonzaga April 6 before welcoming Portland April 7. The Cougars take on LMU and perennial powerhouse Pepperdine the following week.