May 21, 2003
SAN DIEGO - San Diego State senior Oliver Maiberger waited through a lengthy rain delay to record a 6-2, 6-3 victory over 52nd-ranked Aleksey Zharinov of Minnesota in the first round of the NCAA Singles Championship on Wednesday afternoon in Athens, Ga.
Maiberger led 4-1 in the first set when the match was delayed for 35 minutes due to the rain. Once the delay was over, the Aztec senior picked up where he left off by winning seven of the first eight games after returning to the court.
Maiberger, ranked 42nd nationally, improved to 29-9 on the season. He will face the nation's eighth-ranked player in David Martin of Stanford in Thursday's second-round match. Martin needed three sets to dispose of David Loewenthal of Wake Forest in the opening round, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.
A four time All-American, Maiberger is now one win shy of earning his fifth All-America honor for reaching the round of 16 in singles at the NCAA championship.
"Oliver concentrated very well today," San Diego State coach John Nelson said. "He played smart and was patient. I was very proud of the way he performed today."
In addition to playing in the round of 32 in singles play, Maiberger will also team with Ryan Redondo in the NCAA Doubles Championship on Thursday. The duo is seeded second in the 32-team field and will face 21st-ranked Hector Alamada and Sergui Modoc of Fresno State in the first round.