Box Score By Jacob Norling
April 20, 2021
 
(SAN DIEGO, Calif.) Westmont Men's Tennis (5-7, 2-4 GSAC) punched their ticket to the Golden State Athletic Conference tournament semifinals on Tuesday, following a 4-1 win over Arizona Christian (3-9, 2-4).
 
"We figured ACU and us were pretty evenly matched," said Westmont head coach Mark Basham. "We basically switched rankings in the conference all season long so we knew it was going to be a competitive match."
 
In doubles play the Warriors took an early advantage when Benjamin Saito and Sebastian Vethan outdueled ACU's Jonas Wand and David Maas 7-5 on court three. The Firestorm knotted up doubles play when Matthew Alleman and Callen Hein could not fend off Jose Dominguez and Andres Vasquez in a 6-4 defeat.
 
So with the doubles point hanging in the balance all eyes pointed to court one where Ethan Ha and Logan Thompson were neck and neck with ACU's Anthony Popyrin and Leon Oliver. It took thirteen games, but Ha and Thompson gave Westmont an early edge, as they claimed the final doubles match 7 (7) – 6 (3).
 
"Getting the doubles point was huge," said Basham. "We were up on court one early, but those guys came back strong in that final match, forcing the tiebreaker. So it was huge for Ethan and Logan to still be able to fight and get us that early point."
 
Vethan made quick work of Maas on court six to start Singles play, taking the match 6-2, 6-0. Oliver then got ACU on the board by defeating Saito 6-1, 6-2 on court five.
 
Thompson put the Warriors within reach of the semis with a 6-4, 6-3 victory on court two. And it was none other than senior captain Matt Alleman who clinched the Warriors victory with a thrilling comeback win on court four. It took three sets, but Alleman battled his way to a 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 win to ensure Westmont a date on Wednesday with San Diego Christian.
 
"To come from behind and gut that match out was so cool to see for Matthew," said Basham. "So stoked to see him win such a pivotal match his senior that was probably his biggest win at Westmont in his entire career"
 
After the match the good news continued for the Warriors, who learned that Ethan Ha and Logan Thompson were named to the All-GSAC team.
 
For Ha the Carpentaria native has stormed onto the scene for the Warriors in his freshman year. Beginning the year on court two and transitioning to be Westmont's court one staple, Ha has gone 5-4 including three of those victories coming in GSAC play. In doubles play typically with Callen Hein, Ha has posted a 3-2 record in GSAC play.
 
Thompson, also a freshman, has been dominant in doubles play in particular as he's played alongside Matthew Alleman for much of the season. To close out the regular season, Thompson came out victorious in six of his last seven doubles matches with the only loss coming against #13 San Diego Christian.
 
"I couldn't be more excited for those guys," said Basham. "And Callen too, you know he was part of that conversation as well and I don't want his success to be overlooked. But yeah, I'm so happy for both Ethan and Logan. They're buddies and having them start to play doubles together has been super fun and it has created a lot of positive energy. So I'm excited for them this year and to see where they grow from here."
 
Tomorrow the Warriors take on the one-seeded San Diego Christian Hawks who are the #13 team in NAIA, and the only GSAC school ranked in the top 25. Westmont will be looking to be the first team in the conference to beat SDC this season, as the Hawks come in 9-0 in GSAC play.
 
"We have nothing to lose," said Basham. "We had a feel-good win today so we can come out tomorrow totally loose and go to battle. They're obviously a super talented team and we're going to have to play our best to win, so it's going to be an exciting opportunity to battle with those guys."