FAIRFIELD, Calif. — The run was historic. The ending stung.
LMU men's tennis saw its season come to a close Thursday at Green Valley Country Club, falling to No. 16 San Diego 4-0 in the WCC Tournament semifinals. But the Lions leave Fairfield with their heads held high, having finished 17-4, the third-best single-season win total in program history, and reaching the WCC semifinals for the first time since 2019.
San Diego claimed the doubles point to get the scoring started. Vincent Marysko and Manvydas Balciunas handled
Darius Tamaddon and
Kuba Hrynkiewicz 6-2 at No. 3 to draw first blood, and No. 32 Lambert Ruland and Adrien Berrut edged
Cesar Cruz and
Emil Kindhult 7-6 (5) in a tight No. 1 battle to clinch the point. At No. 2,
Max Wuelfing and
Tristan Messerli and their USD counterparts were locked in a dead heat, splitting a 6-6 tiebreak, when play was suspended and the dual moved forward.
San Diego's bottom half of the singles lineup closed the door. Berrut defeated Hrynkiewicz 6-0, 6-3. Ruland was equally efficient at No. 5, dispatching
Cyrus Ahmad 6-3, 6-2. Neo Niedner closed it out at No. 6 against Messerli 6-4, 6-2, completing a three-match sweep that rendered the remaining courts academic.
What played out on courts one through three told a different story, one that speaks well of where this program is headed. Cruz had taken the first set from No. 93 Balciunas in a tiebreak and raced out to a 4-1 lead in the second when the dual was decided. Kindhult had won his first set from Stian Klaassen in a tiebreak as well, battled back from a dropped second set, and was fighting in the third. Wuelfing had taken his opening set 6-4 from No. 16 Oliver Tarvet and was level in a deciding third when the match was called. All three were competing on even terms with a top-20 program, and all three will be back.
That last part may be the most important sentence of LMU's offseason. Every Lion who suited up against San Diego on Thursday returns next season, a loaded group headlined by All-WCC Second Team honorees Wuelfing and Cruz. With 17 wins, a semifinal appearance and a hungry roster returning intact, the foundation for something even bigger in 2026-27 is firmly in place.
