Vaqueros defeat Bakersfield 8-1 to secure a playoff spot
March 7, 2024
SANTA BARBARA, CA - Vaqueros Men's Tennis bounced back with a stellar performance today in a WSC North Conference matchup. Though this is a young team with just one returning player from last season, the Vaqueros are playing well together with a lot of heart and maturity.
In the season's first sweep of doubles, SBCC played their smartest doubles of the season and all three doubles teams served their way to victory earning the Vaqs the first three points.
Matias Lapidus played #1 doubles with Mauritz Seitz and was lighting up returns and playing with great variety throughout the pro set. "It was evident that Matias made a mental breakthough today in his commitment and trust in himself as he and Mauritz Seitz came up with a big upset win at #1 dubs 8-6," head coach Danny Echt said.
Vaqs #2 sophomore tandem of local captain Daniel Truong and Connor Schloemer had the tightest set. The last time these opponents faced off, the match was decided by a point late in the tiebreaker. Vaqs #2 doubles weathered effective offensive attacks by Bakersfield's Brett Yackovich. Daniel and Connor kept plugging away and did a great job of keeping returns either away from their opponent's net man or going right at him. The strategy and consistency keeping returns in play paid off as they earned a break late in the set and Truong served brilliantly to win 8-6.
The first time the Vaqs played Bakersfield, the Renegades took all three top singles spots.
Today was a different story as SBCC captured a convincing win at #1 SBCC Mauritz Seitz defeating Junghans 6-2, 6-4, and #3 Vaquero Dominic Arnell enduring the marathon 3-set match defeating Yackovich 6-4,0-6,6-4. Arnell summarized his performance, "I think the match was a grind. The wind and other factors made it tough for both of us. I just played consistent, solid tennis and kept my head, which helped me to get the win in the end."
Vaqs dominated singles positions #4-6 with Truong, Schloemer and Guler all managing the difficult conditions and capturing straight set victories. The depth in the lineup is very solid for SBCC.
The Vaqueros victory secured them at least a third place conference finish which gives them a berth in the playoffs. Dominic Arnell commented, "The team performed amazingly, the chemistry between the guys is so much better than at the beginning of the season. That is why we are able to perform well and win these matches."
The Vaqueros are now 3-3 and travel to Glendale next Thursday, and host American River College at SBCC Saturday 3/16 at 10 am.