Top-seeded player bounces UNLV's ace from tourney

James Blake cleared his first hurdle Wednesday in his quest to return the NCAA tennis singles championship to Harvard for the first time in 63 years.

The top-seeded Blake, a sophomore from Fairfield, Conn., defeated UNLV's Asaf Tishler 6-2, 6-3 at Athens, Ga.

"I was a little nervous coming into this match," said Blake. "I generally try to control the points. When I tend to lose matches, I lose them because I'm too tentative. I just try to use my speed and weapons the best I can."

The 33rd-ranked Tishler, a senior from Tel Aviv, Israel, finished the season with a 20-9 record and completed his UNLV career with a 85-36 mark. He stands seventh on the UNLV singles victories list and is fifth on the school doubles list with 81 wins.

The UNLV doubles entry of Gregor Skorin and Nenad Zivkovic play a first-round match today against third-seeded Jong Min-Lee and Jean-Noel Grinda of UCLA. Skorin and Zivkovic are unseeded.

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