Dean, Overbeck, Chang Advance To NCAAs At Sectionals

Theo Dean qualified for both NCAA singles and NCAA doubles with wins Saturday at the ITA West Sectional Championships at Pepperdine.

MTEN11/9/2024 4:49 PM | By: Cal Athletics

MALIBU – The California men’s tennis team qualified three Golden Bears for the postseason Saturday at the ITA West Sectional Championships at Pepperdine, where Theo Dean advanced to both the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships, Carl Emil Overbeck teamed with Dean to reach the doubles postseason, and Alex Chang punched his ticket to NCAA singles.
 
Like Dean, Overbeck – who had previously qualified for NCAA singles – will compete in both postseason tournaments from Nov. 19-24 at Baylor.
 
The top-seeded and 25th-ranked Dean and Overbeck beat Nevada’s Lucas Hammond and Youssef Kadiri 6-3, 6-3 in the doubles semifinals at sectionals to move onto Sunday’s final and to NCAAs in Waco, Texas.
 
The 13th-ranked Chang and Mikey Wright were hoping to join their teammates in the final and the NCAA Doubles Championship, but the duo fell to BYU’s 11th-ranked Zach Fuchs and Wally Thayne in their semifinal 4-6, 6-2, 10-7. The Cal duo can still qualify for Waco with a win in Sunday’s third-place match.
 
Dean claimed his second NCAA berth when the 44th-ranked Bear bested UCLA’s 104th-ranked Aadarsh Tripathi 7-5, 6-1 in the singles quarterfinals. Chang, ranked 123rd, defeated UCLA’s 96th-ranked Alexander Hoogmartens 6-4, 6-4 to give Cal three Bears in the NCAA singles field.
 
Cal’s Timofey Stepanov lost to Kadiri 7-5, 6-7(7), 6-0 in the quarterfinals. But the sophomore has one more chance to qualify for NCAAs in Malibu on Sunday, when he’ll compete in a singles playoff match for the postseason.

The final day of sectionals will start at 10 a.m. PT on Sunday.

 

ITA West Sectional Championships – Cal Results

Nov. 9, 2024, in Malibu, Calif.

Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center

 

Doubles Semifinal Round

[1] No. 25 Theo Dean/Carl Emil Overbeck (Cal) def. Lucas Hammond/Youssef Kadiri (Nevada), 6-3, 6-3

No. 11 Zach Fuchs/Wally Thayne (BYU) def. No. 13 Alex Chang/Mikey Wright (Cal), 4-6, 6-2, 10-7

 

Singles Quarterfinal Round

[5-8] No. 44 Theo Dean (Cal) def. No. 104 Aadarsh Tripathi (UCLA), 7-5, 6-1

[4] No. 123 Alex Chang (Cal) def. No. 96 Alexander Hoogmartens (UCLA), 6-4, 6-4

Youssef Kadiri (Nevada) vs. Timofey…