(Photo: Patricia Vicente/WCSN)
Hoping to make a deeper run then last season’s first-round exit in the Pac-12 Tournament, the fifth-seeded and No. 28 Arizona State took on fourth-seed and No. 33 California in the primary matchup of the conference championships on Thursday in Ojai, California. Its hopes were dashed though, as it lost the match 4-1, bowing out in the opener for the second season in a row.
What has been a strength all season for the Sun Devils (13-13, 4-5 Pac-12) was an exploited weakness in the match as they ceded to doubles point heading into singles play. ASU had clinched 10 in a row and has won 19 doubles points across 25 matches this season, but could not muster enough to overcome the Golden Bears’ tandems.
The Sun Devils’ No. 12 pairing of juniors Nathan Ponwith and Dominik Kellovsky were swept 6-0 in the first decision across the three courts, while the newly ranked pairing of No. 77 junior Makey Rakotomalala and graduate student Justin Roberts fell 6-1 to cede the doubles point.
“I give a lot of credit to Cal because they played really well today in doubles,” ASU coach Matt Hill said. “They came out of the gates well and we came out a little flat and weren’t executing well.”
ASU gained momentum early in singles after Roberts stormed to a straight sets victory over his opponent to not the overall score at one-apiece. He finished his individual match in under one hour, achieving a 6-0 bagel in the first set and gliding to a 6-4 victory to take his match. It allowed him to remain hot in the process, as he extended his winning streak to seven (with two unfinished decisions within that timeframe).
“[Justin’s] win reset the climate and environment by putting a point on the board to even it back up,” Hill said. “All the other courts were battles today.”
After Cal (13-11, 5-4) extended its lead to 3-1 with wins on courts six and two, on the brink of the match-clincher, the Sun Devils were able to keep their matches tightly contested and pushed into third sets before No. 74 Ponwith dropped his match on court one to give the Golden Bears the 4-1 win.
This was the third meeting between the two sides this season. Cal defeated ASU 4-2 on its home court in early March, but the Sun Devils responded at the Oracle Collegiate Challenge with a 4-3 victory in comeback fashion to even the season series at one. With the win in the Pac-12 Tournament opener, Cal advanced and clinched the head-to-head season overall record.
“I think overall Cal did a better job in a lot of areas today and played really well today,” Hill said. “Hats off to them for sure.”
ASU next awaits its status for the NCAA Tournament. The Selection Show takes place on Monday, April 29 at 3 p.m. MST. If it qualified, it will be the second year in a row since being reinstatement, and third-straight appearance dating back to its final season before disbandment in 2008. The Sun Devils were bounced in the first round of the Big Dance last season 4-0 to Baylor.
Match Results:
No. 28 ASU vs. No. 33 California (4-1 loss)
Doubles
- No. 31 Jacob Brumm/Yukita Kikuchi (CAL) def. No. 12 Dominik Kellovsky/Nathan Ponwith (ASU) – 6-0
- Andrea Bolla/Tim Ruehl (ASU) vs. Paul Barretto/Can Kaya (CAL) – 5-3 (susp.)
- Ben Draper/Jack Molloy (CAL) def. No. 77 Justin Roberts/Makey Rakotomalala (ASU) – 6-1^
^Clinched doubles point
Order of finish: 1, 3^, 2 (susp.)
Singles
- Yukita Kikuchi (CAL) def. No. 74 Nathan Ponwith (ASU) – 6-2, 4-6, 6-3*
- Jack Molloy (CAL) def. Dominik Kellovsky (ASU) – 6-3, 6-4
- Justin Roberts (ASU) def. Paul Barretto (CAL) – 6-0, 6-4
- Tim Ruehl (ASU) vs. Ben Draper (CAL) – 6-7(6-8), 6-6(6-5) (susp.)
- Andrea Bolla (ASU) vs. Jacob Brumm (CAL) – 4-6, 6-1, 4-3 (susp.)
- Bjorn Hoffmann (CAL) def. Makey Rakotomalala (ASU) – 6-3, 6-3
*Clinched overall match
Order of finish: 3, 6, 2, 1*, (4, 5 susp.)
