STANFORD – Carl Emil Overbeck upset Stanford's 32nd-ranked Samir Banerjee in singles Sunday, but the California men's tennis team lost to the 34th-ranked Cardinal, 4-1, in the Big Slam on The Farm.
 
Cal's record fell to 3-5 after the nonconference match, while the Cardinal improved to 6-3. The rivals play round two of the Big Slam – in a Pac-12 Conference contest – in the regular-season finale April 20 in Berkeley.
 
Overbeck and Mikey Wright got Cal off to a good start in doubles, with the towering duo beating Banerjee and Nisheh Basavareddy, 6-2, on court one. But after a court-three loss for the Bears, Stanford secured the doubles point when Max Basing and Nico Godsick defeated Alex Chang and Timofey Stepanov, 6-4, on court two.
 
In singles, Cal losses on courts six and two left the Bears in a 3-0 hole, until Overbeck bested Banerjee, 2-6, 6-1, 6-3, on court one. Cal trailed 3-1.
 
The match ended when Stanford's Hudson Rivera beat Stepanov, 6-4, 6-4, on court four to make the final score 4-1.
 
"Some individual performances were pretty good today," said Kris Kwinta, Cal's Peter Wright Director of Men's Tennis. "Carlo came back after a week of being sick to get a nice win. It was good to get the W and deliver in a big match against a seasoned player. And that was a good doubles match from Carlo and Mikey on court one. They played with a lot of enthusiasm and energy from the start. They pounced on their opponents and never looked back. But on courts two and three we were very tentative, like we were trying to protect a lead. I was a little disappointed in that regard. We weren't outplayed, but we were a little too nervous in those matches.
 
"Stanford is a good team – a well-coached and talented team. But today was a similar scenario to last week, when we lost five first sets in singles against USD. We lost five first sets again today. It's a little disappointing to be honest. We didn't push them enough to make them feel uncomfortable or to make mistakes. We made a little push with Jonathan Irwanto coming back up from three match points down to win the second set. It was as tough and disappointing as it can be, but we just have to get back on the courts on Tuesday and get back to work."
 
The Bears return to action when they play in the Pacific Coast Men's Doubles Championship starting Thursday in La Jolla. Cal also plays at UC San Diego on Sunday.
 
No. 34 Stanford (6-3) defeats California (3-5), 4-1
Feb. 25, 2024, in Stanford, Calif.
Taube Family Tennis Center
 
DOUBLES
1) Carl Emil Overbeck/Mikey Wright (Cal) def. Samir Banerjee/Nishesh Basavareddy (Stanford), 6-2
2) Max Basing/Nico Godsick (Stanford) def. Alex Chang/Timofey Stepanov (Cal), 6-4*
3) Aryan Chaudhary/Harsh Hemang Parikh (Stanford) def. Ryder Jackson/Lucas Magnaudet (Cal), 6-3

Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2*
*Clinched the doubles point for Stanford
 
SINGLES
1) Carl Emil Overbeck (Cal) def. No. 32 Samir Banerjee (Stanford), 2-6, 6-1, 6-3
2) Max Basing (Stanford) def. Alex Chang (Cal), 6-3, 6-4
3) No. 113 Kyle Kang (Stanford) vs. No. 58 Ryder Jackson (Cal), 5-7, 7-5 UNF
4) Hudson Rivera (Stanford) def. Timofey Stepanov (Cal), 6-4, 6-4^
5) Nico Godsick (Stanford) vs. Jonathan Irwanto (Cal), 6-3, 5-7 UNF
6) No. 79 Neel Rajesh (Stanford) def. Lucas Magnaudet (Cal), 6-2, 6-1

Order of Finish: 6, 2, 1, 4^
^Clinched the overall match for Stanford
 
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