SAN DIEGO – After the match was postponed twice in previous weeks, the Sea Lions finally got the opportunity to host cross-town rival, UC San Diego in men's tennis Friday afternoon. The two teams have been competitive over the past few seasons but it was the Tritons who had the upper hand in Friday's match, earning the 5-2 victory.  
 
The Sea Lions came out strong early earning the doubles points in a tiebreak. The No. 2 doubles match went in favor of the Tritons before Thomas Dafcik and Yuki Okamoto evened doubles at 1-1 with their 6-4 win in the No. 1 position. Mark Penner and Mark Vasat went to a tiebreak in their match earning the 7-5 win to take the match and earn the doubles point for the Sea Lions.
 
The tide turned in favor of the Tritons with singles play as they earned three quick points to put themselves in position to secure the match. Point Loma fell at Nos. 3, 4, and 5 in straight sets to give UCSD the 3-1 advantage. Just one point away from a victory, Dafcik secured a straight set win in his No. 1 singles match to draw within a point of the Tritons. Both Okamoto and freshman, Jasdeep Paintal pushed their matches to a third set but neither was able to secure a win, giving UCSD the 5-2 win.

Team Records
Point Loma 1-2, UCSD 2-4

Wheeler's Words
On clinching the doubles point: "It was a great performance by the guys today. Coming into this match we knew that it would be close either way, so earning the first point in doubles was really big. Getting that point gave us some great momentum going into singles."

On the performance and growth of freshman, Jasdeep Paintal: "The first couple of matches this year he has had to face Azusa and UCSD, which are tough tests for a freshman starting his college career. He has done a really good job of battling hard and staying in every one of his matches so far. That can be a tough thing to do, especially for a freshman, because their play can often be inconsistent early. He has done a great job of getting out of his down moments quickly. He has progressed, even from our first match, and it showed today in his score. I think that throughout the season he is going to continue to gain that valuable experience and minimize his inconsistency."

On the high level of competitiveness between the teams today: "We have a lot of really close, tough matches with UCSD. We really enjoy playing them as well. It's an interesting combination of we really respect them and enjoy competing against them, but also want to beat them just as badly as anybody else. It is a unique match for us and it brings a lot of tension to the match. Both teams believe they can win and know they should be able to win, but we also know it will be a close match so each point feels very important. Anytime we face them the intensity level is high."

On the upcoming road trip to the Bay Area: "Playing on the road in any sport is more difficult. Tennis, specifically, I feel can be very difficult because court conditions can vary as well as weather conditions. Those different conditions can test you mentally, and I am excited to see where our mental toughness level is. I think we are good right now but we we have to be even better when we make that trip."

News and Notes
> Dafcik has yet to drop a match in 2019 (3-0 doubles, 2-0 singles).
> Point Loma falls to 8-25 all-time when facing the Tritons.
> The Sea Lions also started last season 1-2 before finishing 14-10 and making an NCAA Regional appearance

Up Next
The Sea Lions will have a week off before they head to the Bay Area over spring break. They will be back in action March 2 at Sonoma State.  

Results
Box score

Match Notes:
UC San Diego 2-4
Point Loma 1-2
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (3,4,5,1,2,6)
T-3:07 A-30