Men’s tennis NCAA Tournament cuts short
Men’s tennis sent three players to compete in the NCAA Tournament in both singles and doubles beginning May 23. USC’s season officially ended two days later when No. 7-ranked junior Stefan Dostanic suffered a loss in the round of 16.
Dostanic, alongside freshman Peter Makk and senior Bradley Frye, represented the Trojans in individual competition. He registered wins over Mississippi State graduate student Florian Broska and Georgia senior Philip Henning in the rounds of 64 and 32, respectively.
It took a 3-set match for Dostanic to take down Broska. After falling behind with a 4-6 loss in the first set, the junior rallied and took the final 2 sets 6-3, 6-2, to advance past the first round. He took the next matchup against Henning in 2 sets, 7-5, 6-3, before falling in the round of 16 to conference foe Stanford sophomore Arthur Fery in 2 sets, 6-2, 6-3.
“[Dostanic] had expectations of winning and getting that wildcard in the U.S. Open,” Head Coach Brett Masi said. “He was playing really well all season long. He just didn’t have his A-game this tournament, unfortunately.”
Makk was one of few freshmen competing in singles. His run ended after a first-round loss at the hands of Virginia sophomore Iñaki Montes de la Torre in 2 sets, 6-3, 6-1. Montes de la Torre went on to make the quarterfinals.
“[Makk is] one of a select few [freshmen who] can say he was there doing that,” Masi said. “[I’m] very proud of him and his efforts this entire season.”
Frye teamed up with Dostanic in doubles, marking their debut together in the NCAA tournament. The duo was defeated in the first round by Wake Forest pair graduate student Jakob Schnaitter and senior Siddhant Banthia. Frye and Dostanic took the first set, 6-3, but dropped the final 2 sets, 7-6(7),10-5.
The Trojans’ team campaign ended May 14 with a 4-2 round-of-16 loss to Ohio State in NCAA Tournament team play. USC was short-manned, as Makk missed the match due to health and safety protocols. Ranked No. 13 going into the tournament, Masi said the team had greater aspirations than their result.
“Being at USC, your expectation is always to win the Pac-12 and to compete for the national title,” Masi said. “We had sets in almost every match … competing for a chance to win. I can’t ask for much more than that … I thought we did have a team that could win it all, but we just fell a little short. ”
With many new faces on the roster to start the season, the team grew with the experience and competition of the season.
“We just got a lot more mature [this season],” Masi said. “There was a lot to learn about the culture, about how college tennis works … and what [we want] our identity to be.”
According to Masi, the Trojans will return the entirety of this year’s starting squad for next season.
“It’s monstrous — to not lose anybody from your core group and to potentially bring another huge addition to the squad — this team’s only gonna be better for it,” Masi said. “The rest of the country better be ready for the Trojans.”