The UCSB men’s tennis program has announced the signing of three players to National Letters of Intent during the early signing period this week.
The Gauchos have signed Chase Masciorini, Cody Rakela, and Andy Huang to join the team for the 2014-2015 season.
Chase Masciorini, currently a senior at Dana Hills High School, ranks No. 19 in California and No. 104 nationally according to tennisrecruiting.net. In juniors, Masciorini won the Boys 18’s USTA Regional in both singles and doubles in Hawaii this year and placed 3rd in doubles at the USTA Regional in Tucson. He was a singles finalist in the South Coast League as a freshman and won as a sophomore.
“Chase has great fundamentals and is clearly on the rise, winning his last National Junior tournament in Hawaii last month,” said Head Coach Marty Davis.
The next two recruits, Cody Rakela and Andy Huang, are “junior tennis rivals from Nor Cal and have both been playing in the highest level National Junior events for years,” noted Davis.
Cody Rakela, a senior at Scotts Valley High School, is ranked 5th in Nor Cal Boys 18’s and according to tennisrecruiting.net, Rakela ranks No. 108 nationally. In juniors play, Rakela was a singles finalist at the Boys 18’s Johnson Ranch Jr. Championships and a doubles semifinalist at the Boys 16’s Easter Bowl. As a freshman, Rakela was the SCCAL singles varsity champion.
“Cody has good hands and is a more creative, all-round player whose success in doubles suggests he could have an immediate impact for us next season,” says Coach Davis.
Andy Huang, currently a senior at American High School in Fremont, Calif., was ranked as high as No. 1 in doubles and No. 3 in singles in Northern California when he played in Boys 16’s. Huang placed 7th at the Boys 16’s Intersectionals in 2012.
“Andy has a ‘big game’ and is expected to adapt well to the pace of D1 tennis,” said Davis. “He has been coached by, and comes to UCSB at the recommendation of former Gaucho star Max Taylor.”
“All three prospects are the ‘diamond in the rough’ type athletes that we’ve had a lot of success developing into solid D1 players in the past, said Davis. “We’re really excited about this recruiting class.”
The Gauchos have concluded their fall tournament schedule and will begin the dual match portion of their season on January 17 against Portland.
