Giron overpowers Rubin

COSTA MESA — A battle between one of the nation’s highest ranked collegiate tennis players and one of the highest ranked high school players resulted in a convincing victory for UCLA’s Marcos Giron, who beat New York high schooler Noah Rubin Friday to advance to the semifinals of the Costa Mesa Pro Classic at Costa Mesa Tennis Center.

Joining Giron in the final four of the $10,000 USTA Pro Circuit event are: Jeff Dadamo, who ousted top seed Nicolas Meister, a Trabuco Canyon native; Haythem Abid, of Tunisia, a former member of the UCLA’s tennis squad; and Ernesto Escobedo, of West Covina, currently the 18th ranked high school senior.

Also Friday, the doubles duos of Giron and fellow UCLA teammate Mackenzie McDonald advanced to the finals, along with South Africa’s Keith-Patrick Crowley and Matt Fawcett.

Both the doubles and singles final will be held Sunday.

Giron, the nations’ seventh-ranked collegiate player, seemed to cruise in his victory over Rubin. But even though it was straight sets, appearances were deceiving.

“It was straight sets, but it wasn’t an easy match,” said Giron, in his junior year at UCLA. “There were some tough points and I was just fortunate to win most of them. I tried to dictate the flow early in rallies rather than be defensive.”

Dadamo avenged a tough defeat in Claremont last week to Meister, who beat him in three sets. Friday, Dadamo said he said he felt less nervous and more in rhythm.

“There are a lot of things that bounce around in your head when you’re on the court, and I tried to keep focused on the right ones,” said Dadamo, a Florida native who finished his collegiate career at Texas A&M.

Abid defeated Glendale’s Alexander Sarikissian in straight sets Friday, and Esobedo defeated Northern California resident Connor Farren.

Part of the USTA’s Pro Circuit, the $10,000 event features 32 singles players and 16 doubles teams. All players are seeking to boost their world tennis ranking through participating in USTA Pro Circuit events held weekly across the country.

Along with showcasing professional tennis players, the Costa Mesa Tennis Center has joined the Nickelodeon Worldwide Day of Play. The event, available to junior tennis players of all skill levels, will be held Sunday from 1 to 3 p.m. For more information, visit https://www.youthtennis.com.

— From staff reports