USC Beats Florida in Quarterfinals; UCLA Loses

Top-seeded USC advanced to college tennis’ version of the final four with a 6-0 quarterfinal victory over 10th-ranked Florida Sunday, but host Georgia kept the semifinals from being an all-Pac-10 competition by upsetting second-seeded UCLA, 5-4, at the NCAA Men’s Tennis Championships at Athens, Ga.

The Trojans (28-2) will face No. 3 Stanford (21-4) today. The three-time defending champions ousted Arizona State, 6-0. California defeated Louisiana State, 5-2, in Sunday’s other quarterfinal and will face the No. 4 Bulldogs (26-2) today.

Although Jason Netter defeated Al Parker, the nation’s second-ranked player, 2-6, 7-5, 6-2, the Bruins lost four of six singles matches, with Fritz Bissell beating Jack Frierson at No. 4, 7-5, 2-6, 6-4, to send the match into doubles.

UCLA (27-4) evened the match by getting wins in doubles from Bill Behrens and Robbie Wendell and Bill Barber and Jason Netter. But in the deciding doubles match, UCLA’s No. 1 team of Bissell and Mark Knowles lost to Parker and Patricio Arnold, 7-6 (7-3), 5-7, 6-2.

USC has reached the semifinals in nine of the 15 years since the dual match format was adopted in 1977, but have never made the finals. Stanford knocked out USC in three semifinals, including last year’s.