By
David Stevenson
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Ojai fine tunes them for next week
Members of the UA men's tennis team did something over the weekend that might not have been seen as an accomplishment: They stood pat.
With the Wildcats on the verge of being invited to the NCAA Regionals later this week, the team had a solid showing at the Pacific 10 Conference Individual Championships in Ojai, Calif.
"We just wanted everyone to keep playing and stay in shape," UA head coach Bill Wright said.
Senior Jari Niskala went the furthest in the singles tournament of any UA player. Thursday, Niskala beat Southern California's Garrett Wong 6-4, 5-7, 6-1 in the round of 32. In the Sweet Sixteen, he earned a default against UCLA's Lassi Ketola.
Niskala's run ended in the quarterfinals when he fell to Stanford's Carter Morris, 6-7, 6-3, 3-6.
"Jari had a great weekend," Wright said. "He had a great serve and a good forehand throughout the tournament,"
Junior Steven Capriati won his opening match, 7-6, 7-6 against USC's Parker Collins. Capriati fell in the next round to Stanford's Ryan Haviland 2-6, 3-6. Paired with freshman Carl Hagman in doubles play, Capriati was forced to withdraw in the Sweet Sixteen because to back problems.
"Steven's back was hurting him all weekend," Wright said. "He will be fine by next weekend for the Regionals."
In doubles play, junior Bruno Aprovic and Niskala had a 9-8 win. Freshman Armaud Angiel and Junior Brian Jackson also won in the opening round. Both pairs lost in the following round.
Wright said the Wildcats plan to practice easy this week to better focus on upcoming final exams and recover from the weekend's injuries.
"We'll cut back on practice this week," Wright said. "We probably won't have practice (today) and will only practice lightly (tomorrow) and Wednesday."
Thursday, the NCAA will announce the pairings for NCAA Regionals.
"Well just wait and see what the NCAA decides," Wright said.
