NEWBERG, Ore. --- No. 16 George Fox took down No. 35 UC Santa Cruz in decisive fashion, 8-1, after overcoming the Banana Slugs' best efforts on multiple courts. The visiting Slugs pushed the Bruins into three superset tiebreaks but could only come away with a single match as a team.
How It Happened
George Fox swept doubles play with only 10 games surrendered as a team. Will Leach and Luke Lemaitre won, 8-2, and Rox Rogers paired with Ryan Olson to win, 8-3, on court two. Camden Camacho combined with Hunter Fujimori to win, 8-5, on court three to complete the sweep.
Camacho kept the good times rolling with a 6-1, 6-2 win on court six in singles, and Rox Rogers won 6-0, 6-4, to formally clinch the match for Fox. Olson won on court five in a superset tiebreak with a 2-6, 6-3, 1-0 (10-7) final, and Luis Rojas got off to a strong start before falling 6-1, 3-6, 0-1 (3-10) in the Banana Slugs' lone win of the afternoon.
Lemaitre outdueled the Slugs' no. 2 singles player, 6-4, 6-1, in a drawn-out battle that featured hours of groundstrokes. Leach capped the match after he defeated the no. 10 singles player in the region with a superset tiebreak of his own in a 6-3, 6-7 (4-7), 1-0 (10-8) victory.
Coach's Thoughts
"We started really strong in doubles today," coach Jeff Cero said. "I was really proud of Hunter stepping up and playing with a lot of confidence around the court. It really set us up well for singles today."
Milestone Watch
"I'm really proud of Luke for so many different reasons, and I'm definitely not surprised by him joining the team's Bruin Club with his 101st and 102nd wins today," coach Cero said. "He's grown so much on and off the court over his time here at the program, and I'm really proud of the man he is becoming and will continue to become."
What It Means
Fox matches its 2021 record at 12-5 with two left on the regular season slate and is solidly in first place in the conference.
Up Next
Fox finishes its regular season on the road against Pacific Lutheran and Puget Sound on Easter weekend.
