BERKELEY – California men's tennis will make its Northern California dual-match debut when the 40th-ranked Golden Bears tangle with No. 6 Stanford in the first round of the Big Slam on Sunday at 1 p.m. down on the Farm.
 
The Bears bring a 2-3 record into the nonconference match with the 7-2 Cardinal. Fans can keep up with the action from the Taube Family Tennis Center via Stanford's live stream and live scores available by clicking here. Fans can also follow @CalMensTennis on Twitter for score updates.
 
Cal will host Stanford in a Pac-12 Conference match on April 13 at 1 p.m. in the Bears' last home match of the regular season.
 
The Bears' previously scheduled two matches – a Feb. 16 doubleheader vs. UNLV and Pacific in Stockton, California – were rained out. The match against Pacific has been rescheduled, with Cal now hosting the Tigers on March 5 at 5 p.m. at the Hellman Tennis Courts. The Pacific match will be part of a March 5 doubleheader, as the Bears also added a match vs. Saint Mary's at 1:30 p.m. at Hellman.
 
Poll Position
Cal has been strong in doubles much of the season, and that's evidenced in Wednesday's Oracle ITA Rankings. The duo of sophomore Jacob Brumm and freshman Yuta Kikuchi (12-9 record) is at No. 13, the team of sophomores Paul Barretto and Can Kaya (12-1) is ranked 31st and the duo of sophomore Jack Molloy and junior Mert Zincirli (3-1) moves into the poll at No. 42.
 
Scouting the Cardinal

• Stanford hosts UC Davis on Friday at 1 p.m.
• The Cardinal is ranked sixth in both the Tennis Channel/USTA Top 25 and in the Oracle ITA poll
• In its last match, the Cardinal upset No. 4 Florida, 4-1, in the consolation draw of the ITA National Team Indoor Championship in Chicago
• Four Stanford players were ranked in the Feb. 6 singles poll in No. 10 Axel Geller, No. 33 William Genesen, No. 43 Sameer Kumar and No. 61 Alexandre Rotsaert
• Four Stanford players are ranked in Wednesday's singles poll in No. 13 Axel Geller, No. 31 Sameer Kumar, No. 39 Alexandre Rotsaert and No. 60 William Genesen
• Paul Goldstein is in his fifth year as head coach at his alma mater

 
Last Time: Cal Posts Upset Win Over No. 5 USC

In Cal's most recent match, Jack Molloy completed a big California comeback when he knocked off Riley Smith to clinch the Golden Bears' 4-3 upset win over fifth-ranked USC on Feb. 9 at Marks Tennis Stadium. The last time Cal defeated the Trojans on their home courts was on April 7, 2006, when a young Tyler Browne - now the Bears' associate head coach - contributed a victory at court-two singles.

In the recent win, Cal won the doubles point, but the Trojans then took a 3-1 lead in singles. Cal sophomore Ben Draper started the climb back, upsetting USC's 50th-ranked Tanner Smith, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2. Freshman Yuta Kikuchi knotted things at 3-3 with a 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-4 win over USC's Jack Jaede on court three, before Molloy settled the match with his 7-6(3), 6-7(6), 6-3 victory over Riley Smith.

Next Time
Cal faces Oklahoma State in a dual match and also starts tournament play in the Pacific Coast Doubles Championships on Feb. 28 in La Jolla, California.