University High of Irvine wins third consecutive Southern California Regional boys tennis title, fifth overall with 5-2 victory against Harvard-Westlake

CLAREMONT – Harvard-Westlake arrived at the Claremont Club with a great deal of motivation to prevent University High of Irvine from becoming the first boys tennis program to win three consecutive Southern California Regional titles.

But the top-seeded Trojans had plenty of options, including the most significant lineup presence in the entire two-day, eight-team tournament in sophomore Rishvanth Krishna, the reigning Ojai boys CIF singles winner.

Despite No. 2 Harvard-Westlake’s best efforts to rely on a strong doubles lineup and potentially prevail in one singles showdown in Saturday’s final, University demonstrated depth and resolve when it mattered most, winning two crucial three-set battles to secure a 5-2 victory to not only achieve a historic three-peat, but also capture a record fifth regional team title in the past 13 years.

University (28-1), the reigning CIF USTA state champion, will have an opportunity to pursue back-to-back crowns May 31 against Northern California representative Menlo School (29-1) – a 6-1 winner Saturday against California High of San Ramon at Broadstone Sports Club in Folsom – at the Sierra Sport and Racquet Club in Fresno.

University High of Irvine won the inaugural CIF state boys tennis title last year with a 6-1 victory against California High of San Ramon | Photo courtesy of University High

The Trojans produced a 4-2 semifinal victory March 15 against Menlo School at the All-American Invitational.

University also outlasted Harvard-Westlake with a 10-8 triumph May 16 in the CIF-Southern Section Open Division final at University of Redlands to win the program’s fourth straight championship.

Krishna, who didn’t compete Friday for the Trojans in their quarterfinal or semifinal victories, earned a 6-0, 6-3 win Saturday in the No. 1 singles matchup against Connor Yang to help University build an early 3-0 advantage.

But it was the No. 3 doubles pairing of Cedric Lichtsteiner and Joseph Chan rallying for a 4-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5 win against Harvard-Westlake’s Andrew Esrailian and Elliot Meth that secured the fourth point for the Trojans, who also won regional championships in 2013 and 2014.

Daniel Zhu outlasted Harvard-Westlake’s Gideon Ames by a 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 margin in the No. 4 singles showdown to help University sweep all four matchups in every round of the regional tournament.

The Wolverines (12-4) managed only one singles win in nine sets against University in the section final.

Ji Hyuk Im produced a 6-2, 7-5 triumph Saturday at No. 2 singles for the Trojans, with Arystarkh Len achieving a 6-0, 6-4 victory against Harvard-Westlake’s Zack Figlin in the No. 3 clash.

Christian Stubbeman and Chase Klugo earned a 6-3, 7-5 win over Langston Walter-Wu and Human Alajeely at the No. 1 pairing for Harvard-Westlake, with Alex Nickoll and Matt Reiter edging Tyler Chandler and Reid Hashimoto in the No. 2 doubles showdown for the Wolverines, who were seeking a third regional crown to go along with titles in 2018 and 2021.

Harvard-Westlake boys tennis team advanced to its first Southern California Regional final since 2021 | Photo courtesy of Harvard-Westlake

Despite several battles in CIF-Southern Section finals during the past 15 years, Saturday showcased the first matchup involving University and Harvard-Westlake in a regional championship contest.

The Wolverines haven’t defeated University since the 2021 CIF-Southern Section Open Division championship, with Harvard-Westlake prevailing 93-88 on games after the teams played to a 9-9 result at University of Redlands.

The Trojans haven’t lost a postseason match since being knocked off by Canyon Crest Academy in the 2022 regional final at Claremont Club, defeating Corona del Mar to capture the 2023 regional crown and Torrey Pines last year, before securing a 6-1 victory against California High in the inaugural state final last season in Fresno.