USC Freshman Mamiit Wins to Advance to Men’s Final

Cecil Mamiit of USC will try to become the first freshman to win the NCAA men’s singles title since John McEnroe did it for Stanford in 1978, but Mamiit’s opponent today won’t be a familiar face.

Mamiit, fourth-seeded, dispatched Johan Hede of Mississippi, 6-4, 6-1, Saturday at Athens, Ga., but USC’s other semifinal entrant, Adam Peterson, lost to Fresno State’s Fredrik Bergh, 6-4, 6-3.

Mamiit, the only seeded player to reach the semifinals, was taken to three sets by Stanford’s Paul Goldstein in the second round and lost only 18 games in his other four matches.

Bergh has not dropped a set en route to the finals.

UCLA’s top-seeded doubles team of Justin Gimelstob and Srdjan Muskatirovic beat Texas Christian’s Paul Robinson and David Roditi, 6-2, 7-5, in the quarterfinals and third-seeded Roger Pettersson and Luke Smith of Nevada Las Vegas, 6-3, 6-0, in the semis.

Gimelstob and Muskatirovic will play Texas Christian’s Ashley Fisher and Jason Weir-Smith, seeded second, in today’s final.

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Kylie Hunt of Kansas beat Clemson freshman Sophie Woorons, 6-1, 7-5, and Florida’s Jill Craybas beat Stanford’s Ania Bleszynski, 6-2, 6-3, to set up the finals of the NCAA Division I Women’s Tennis Championships at Tallahassee, Fla.

Craybas and Hunt have never faced each other and today will be their first appearance in the NCAA final. Craybas lost in last year’s semifinals to eventual champion Keri Phebus of UCLA.

Hunt has held the No. 1 spot in the Rolex Collegiate Rankings for most of the spring.