A pair of upsets shook up the Channel League Doubles Championship on Wednesday, as the teams of Austin Cano/Christian Edstrom and Michael Lowe/Jacob Rucker slipped past higher seeds to advance into Thursday’s semifinals.
Top-seeded Jimmy Vaughan and Chris Williams also advanced, as did Santa Barbara High teammates Matt Baum and Dan Diaz as the No. 2 seed. The Dons teams beat the two San Marcos duos that reached the quarterfinals, Jackson Mann/Scott Messier and Jackson Foster/Parker Funk.
Santa Barbara's Chris Williams takes a volley out of the air in his quarterfinal match on Wednesday.
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The lefty-righty combo of Vaughan and Williams, both seniors, has tremendous length and great power. The pair didn’t lose a match in league play.
“Both of our serves and both of our volleys are very strong so that definitely helps us,” Williams said.
Lowe and Rucker, from Ventura, are the lowest seed in the semifinals as the No. 6 team. They made it past No. 3 Logan Liddell and Chris Grant, of Santa Barbara, 6-3, 6-1 in the quarterfinals. Cano and Edstrom toppled Dos Pueblos teammates and No. 4-seeded Andy Silverstein and Eric Katz in their quarterfinal match.
“Christian (Edstrom) just played exceptional,” Cano said, acknowledging that the win over their teammates was bittersweet. “I really wish they could have been in the lower half so maybe we could have played them in the finals.”
Thursday’s semifinals, along with the singles championship, will be played at Cathedral Oaks Tennis Club. Lowe and Rucker meet Baum and Diaz in one semi while top-seeded Vaughan and Williams take on Cano and Edstrom at 1:30 p.m. with the finals for singles and doubles at 3:30.
Chase Melton and Sasha Gryaznov will meet for the second straight year in the singles final, although Melton will be defending a title this year.
RESULTS
Round 1:
#1 Jimmy Vaughn/Chris Williams (SB) def Eric Zmolek/Kyle Davis (DP) 6-0, 6-2
#8 Jackson Foster/Parker Funk (SM) def Connor Dann/Rowland (V) 6-2, 6-0
#5 Austin Cano/Christian Edstrom (DP) def. Jon Oyan/Andres Parra (B) 6-0, 6-0
#4 Andy Silverstein/Eric Katz (DP) def Brandon Bushnell/Parker Harris (V) 6-1,6-0
#3 Chris Grant/Logan Liddell (SB) def Mike Astin/Vince Luciani (B) 6-1, 6-1
#6 Michael Lowe/Jacob Rucker (V) def Brian Perrett/Noah Killman (B) 6-0, 6-1
#7 Jackson Mann/Scott Messier (SM) def Sean Handley/Sean Simpson (DP) 6-2, 6-2
#2 Matt Baum/Danny Diaz (SB) def Nik Kilpelainen/Garrett Timmons (SM) 7-5, 6-1
Round 2:
#1 Vaughan/Williams (SB) def #8 Foster/Funk (SM) 6-2, 6-4
#5 Cano/Edstrom (DP) def #4 Silverstein/Katz (DP) 6-2, 6-3
#6 Lowe/Rucker (V) def #3 Grant/Liddell (SB) 6-3, 6-1
#2 Baum Diaz (SB) def #7 Mann/Messier (SM) 6-1, 6-2
