SANTA BARBARA -- In the second meeting of the season between No. 31 BYU and UC Santa Barbara, the Gauchos avenged their earlier loss with a 4-3 upset in California Friday.

The Cougars’ doubles pair of Cassidy Mears and Spencer Smith fell 8-3 at the No. 2 position. Juniors Evan Urbina and Daniel Hwang notched a win on court three at 8-5. At the No. 1 spot, Georgy Batrakov and Thomas Shubert fought hard but dropped a 9-7 decision to give the Gauchos the first point of the day.

BYU and UCSB split the singles matches with each team recording three wins. Urbina, and Smith earned straight-set victories for the Cougars on courts two and five, respectively. Batrakov overcame Matthieu Forget in a three-set battle for the third BYU win. The Gauchos took the remaining matches in straight sets to slip past the Cougars 4-3.

Saturday, the team will try to bounce back against Loyola Marymount. First serve is set for 9:30 a.m. PT at the LMU Tennis Center in Los Angeles. Live stats will be available for the match against Loyola Marymount. To follow along, click here.

Results
No. 31 BYU-3
UCSB-4
Doubles
1. Scott Hohenstein/Evan Jurgensen (UCSB) def. Shubert/Batrakov 9-7
2. Lucas Sudow/Benjamin Recknagel (UCSB) def. Mears/Smith 8-3
3. Urbina/Hwang def. Chavez-Goggin/Caledonia (UCSB) 8-5
Singles
1. P. Therp (UCSB) def. T. Shubert (BYU) 6-2, 6-2
2. E. Urbina (BYU) def. L. Sudow (UCSB) 6-3, 6-4
3. B. Recknagel (UCSB) def. C. Mears (BYU) 7-5, 6-2
4. G. Batrakov (BYU) def. M. Forget (UCSB) 6-3, 4-6, 6-2
5. S. Smith (BYU) def. T. Chavez-Goggin (UCSB) 6-2, 6-2
6. M. Glenn (UCSB) def. M. Eraso (BYU) 6-1, 6-4

PROVO -- Two teams await the No. 31 BYU men’s tennis team in Southern California this weekend. The Cougars will play their last nonconference matches against UC Santa Barbara and Loyola Marymount.

“Good players like to compete,” BYU coach Brad Pearce said. “We’re looking forward to going down there and playing. Hopefully we’ll have a successful weekend.”

In its last outing, BYU rebounded from a loss to Nebraska with a 6-1 rout of No. 58 San Diego. The team improved to 14-3 on the season with the win and senior Cassidy Mears was honored as the Mountain West Conference Men’s Tennis Player of the Week.

“We’re glad to have been outside the last couple of days,” Pearce said. “We’ll be at sea level this weekend and conditions will be slower but we’ll be well-prepared.”

First up for the Cougars will be UCSB (5-7). The Gauchos have entered the rankings twice this year but do not currently grace the charts. BYU defeated Santa Barbara 5-2 at home Feb. 6 of this year. The Gauchos’ latest result was a 6-1 loss to No. 19 Washington Tuesday.

Saturday the Cougars will face Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles. The Lions own a 6-8 record after losing to 4-3 in their last match. Last season, BYU swept LMU 7-0 at home.

“We’re not taking Santa Barbara or Loyola Marymount lightly,” Pearce said. “This will be good preparation for playing outdoors the rest of the season.”

Friday’s match will begin at noon PT at the Recreation Center Courts in Santa Barbara, Calif. Saturday’s contest will take place at 9:30 a.m. PT at the LMU Tennis Center in Los Angeles. Live stats will be available for the match against Loyola Marymount. To follow along, click here.