By
David Stevenson
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Early lead sets Arizona's pace
Entering the final weekend before returning to conference play, No. 52 Arizona believed this to be the biggest weekend of the season.
The Wildcats were facing UC Irvine and San Diego, two talented and ranked teams.
Arizona (9-3 overall, 0-3 in Pacific 10 Conference) dominated both schools, clinching both matches by scoring the first four points.
Despite UCI and San Diego's tough playing style, the Wildcats had answers for the two California schools.
"We all knew we could beat them," freshman Roeland Brateanu said. "We were confident going into the match,"
Saturday, Arizona beat No. 50 USD, 4-3. Sophomore Tom Lloyd and freshmen Carl Hagman and Whi Kim quickly disposed the opposition to clinch the match.
Hagman's 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 win reflected his mental edge.
"I had a great start in the third set. I just stayed focused and concentrated all the way through," he said.
USD's three wins took the full three sets, causing the score to misrepresent the Wildcats' domination.
"It could have easily been 7-0, all three (losses) were so close," Brateanu said.
Saturday's doubles point against Irvine signaled the beginning of the 6-1 flogging.
"The doubles point means so much, it just gives us a lot of momentum," Hagman said. Freshman Arnud Agniel, Kim and Lloyd blew away the oppositions in straight sets.
Already up 4-0, and with the match clinched, the team coasted to victory.
"Anytime you get a 4-0 lead, it just takes the pressure off of everyone," Hagman said.
Junior Steve Capriati and senior Jari Niskala added to the domination with their own victories.
Hagman fell to Chris Ma, 6-0, 3-6, 5-7, which didn't scathe his attitude.
"The guy had a lot of respect for me," he said. "(In the second set) I started missing a lot of shots, and he started to pick things up."
The nine victories before getting back to Pac-10 play bodes well for a good season.
"The wins were well deserved," Brateanu said. "We've showed a lot of people we can be taken seriously now."
Hagman agreed.
"It's a definite confidence booster, we want to show the Pac-10 that we can play," he said.
