Feb. 28, 2003
LA JOLLA, Calif. – The Notre Dame men’s tennis team claimed wins in five of its first eight matches at the Pacific Coast Doubles Championship, which kicked off in La Jolla, Calif., on Friday afternoon. The 46th-ranked Irish are taking this weekend off from dual match play, but eight team members have traveled to the West Coast to participate in this annual doubles event, which is open to amateurs and professionals of all ranks.
Notre Dame’s No. 1 team of junior captain Matthew Scott (Oakton, Va./International School of Paris) and sophomore Brent D’Amico (Castle Rock, Colo./St. Stephen’s Episcopal School) turned in the best performances of the day for the Irish, winning twice to move into the round of 16 in the main draw (championship flight). After receiving a first-round bye, Scott and D’Amico easily dispatched Carey Rubin and David Anving of Michigan, 6-4, 6-0. The Irish duo then ousted the unaffiliated tandem of Martin Bamba and Eric Riley in three sets, winning 7-5, 5-7, 6-1.
Fortunes were almost as kind for Notre Dame’s second doubles team of junior captain Luis Haddock (Caguas, P.R./Notre Dame H.S.) and senior captain Brian Farrell (Lilburn, Ga./St. Pius X H.S.), who also logged two victories. They opened on Friday with a 6-2, 6-1 rout over the independent team of Robert Friedman and Yahuda Hausman. Then, in the second round, Haddock and Farrell rallied from one set down to topple Stanford’s Philip Sheng and Joe Kao, 3-6, 6-4, 7-5. However, the run of success ended for the Irish pair in the round of 32, as they were eliminated by the unaffiliated team of Ryan Redondo and former San Diego State All-American Oliver Maiberger, 6-4, 6-2.
The third Irish doubles team of junior Nicolas Lopez-Acevedo (Guaynabo, P.R./Colegio Marista) and sophomore Paul McNaughton (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central H.S.) stumbled out of the blocks, losing their opening match by a 6-4, 6-4 count to former Michigan standout Dan Goldberg and J.M. Kamma-Choon. Buoyed by a second chance in the consolation bracket, Lopez-Acevedo and McNaughton rebounded nicely to knock off the team of John Chan and former UC-Santa Barbara All-American Simon Shen, 6-4, 6-4.
Notre Dame fielded a fourth doubles team for this event, as junior Ben Hatten (Potomac, Md./Winston Churchill H.S.) paired up with freshman Patrick Buchanan (Fullerton, Calif./Servite H.S.). They also struggled in their first match, bowing to Mike Meyer and Sean Nagle, 6-4, 7-5 in the main draw. That dropped Hatten and Buchanan into the consolation bracket, wherethey were scheduled to play late Friday evening.
Action continues at the Pacific Coast Doubles Championship on Saturday, as the Irish pair of Scott/D’Amico competes in the round of 16 in the main draw. Meanwhile, the Notre Dame teams of Lopez-Acevedo/McNaughton and Hatten/Buchanan will look to survive and advance through the consolation bracket. The tournament is scheduled to conclude on Sunday, with championship play in both the main and consolation draws.
— ND —
Pacific Coast Doubles Championship — Day #1 (Notre Dame results only)
Main Draw — First Round
Luis Haddock/Brian Farrell (ND) d. Robert Friedman/Yahuda Hausman (unattached), 6-2, 6-1
Dan Goldberg/J.M.Kamma-Choon (unattached) d. Nicolas Lopez-Acevedo/Paul McNaughton (ND), 6-4, 6-4
Mike Meyer/Sean Nagle (unattached) d. Ben Hatten/Patrick Buchanan (ND) 6-4, 7-5
Main Draw — Second Round
Matthew Scott/Brent D’Amico (ND) d. Carey Rubin/David Anving (Michigan), 6-4, 6-0
Haddock/Farrell (ND) d. Philip Sheng/Joe Kao (Stanford), 3-6, 6-4, 7-5
Main Draw — Third Round
Scott/D’Amico (ND) d. Martin Bamba/Eric Riley (unattached), 7-5, 5-7, 6-1
Ryan Redondo/Oliver Maiberger (unattached) d. Haddock/Farrell (ND), 6-4, 6-2
Consolation Draw — First Round
Lopez-Acevedo/McNaughton (ND) d. Simon Shen/John Chan (unattached), 6-4, 6-4