Altamirano helps Virginia reach NCAA final

One second after a teammate's victory, Collin Altamirano
of Sacramento clinched No. 3 Virginia's win over No. 2
and host Baylor. 2014 photo by Paul Bauman

   It happened within one second.
   Mitchell Frank and Sacramento's Collin Altamirano won match points in singles almost simultaneously to give the third-ranked Virginia men a 4-2 victory over No. 2 and host Baylor on Monday in Waco, Texas, in the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament.
   The Bears won the doubles point as Felipe Rios and Vince Schneider defeated Altamirano and J.C. Aragone 8-7 (5) on Court 3. 
   With the overall match tied 2-2, the 20th-ranked Frank defeated No. 35 Tony Lupieri 6-0, 2-6, 7-5 on Court 2. Then No. 77 Altamirano, a freshman and the 2013 USTA 18-and-under champion, beat No. 58 Max Tchoutakian 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 on Court 3 to clinch the victory.
   The Cavaliers (28-3), who had been 0-2 against the Bears (25-6) this season, will play top-seeded Oklahoma (29-2) today at 11 a.m. PDT for the title. The Sooners, who advanced with a 4-3 victory over No. 6 Texas Christian, beat Virginia 4-3 on March 10 in Norman, Okla.
   Virginia reached the final for the fourth time in five years and Oklahoma -- coached by John Roddick, Andy's older brother -- for the second straight year. The Cavaliers seek their second NCAA title, after winning two years ago, and the Sooners their first.
   The sixth-ranked UCLA women (23-4) will try to win their second straight crown when they face No. 4 Vanderbilt (24-6) today at 3 p.m. The Bruins topped No. 6 Georgia 4-1, and the Commodores knocked off No. 1 USC 4-0.
   The Trojans' Giuliana Olmos, a junior from Fremont, lost both of her matches on Court 2. The 19th-ranked team of Olmos and Zoe Scandalis fell to No. 18 Ashleigh Antal and Astra Sharma 8-6, and No. 14 Olmos dropped the clincher to No. 42 Sharma 6-2, 3-6, 6-2.