Hawai’i Men’s Tennis Falls to No. 15 California, 6-1
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HONOLULU – The University of Hawai’i men’s tennis team began its 2026 season with a hard-fought 6-1 loss against the 15th-ranked California Golden Bears on wednesday night at the UH Tennis Complex.
Match Highlights
Despite the overall result, Hawai’i showcased competitive spirit, with Azuma Visaya securing a crucial singles victory at the No. 1 position. However, California dominated the doubles matches and ultimately claimed five of the six singles contests.
Doubles Competition
The Golden Bears gained an early advantage by sweeping the doubles point. The closest match came at No. 3 doubles,where Hawai’i’s Kent Mueller and Hikaru Takahashi fought valiantly,even reaching match point,but ultimately fell to Cal’s Winston Wooln Lee and Paris Pouatcha in a 7-6 (7-1) tiebreaker.
- #55 Timofey Stephanov/Tiago Silva (Cal) def. Timothy Li/Kosuke Nakanishi (UH), 6-2
- fryderyk Lechno Wasiutynski (Cal) def. Toa Maeda/Azuma Visaya (UH), 6-4
- Winston Wooln Lee/Paris Pouatcha (Cal) def. Kent Mueller/Hikaru Takahashi (UH), 7-6 (7-1)
Singles Results
Visaya’s victory at No. 1 singles was a highlight for the Rainbow Warriors. after taking the first set, he battled through a second-set loss and ultimately prevailed in a 10-point tiebreaker, defeating Fryderyk Lechno Wasiutynski 6-3, 5-7, 1-0 (10-5). Other matches proved challenging for Hawai’i, with California securing wins in the remaining singles contests.
- Azuma Visaya (UH) def. Fryderyk Lechno Wasiutynski (Cal), 6-3, 5-7, 1-0 (10-5)
- Tiago Silva (Cal) def. Kosuke Nakanishi (UH), 6-4, 6-1
- Timofey Stepanov (Cal) def. Timothy Li (UH), 7-6 (7-1), 6-4
- Paris Pouatcha (Cal) def. Toa Maeda (UH), 6-4, 6-0
- Winston Wooln Lee (Cal) def. Hikaru Takahashi (UH), 7-6 (7-5), 7-5
- Leonard Cattaneo (Cal) def.ziwen Ju (UH), 6-3, 6-3
Upcoming Matches
The Rainbow Warriors will quickly regroup and continue their opening week with a pair of matches. They will face Gonzaga on Friday,January 9th,and Washington on january 10th. Both matches are scheduled to begin at 4:00 p.m. HT at the UH Tennis Complex.
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