BURBANK HIGH — It was hard to tell the Burbank High boys' tennis team was involved in an important match on Thursday.
With a workmanlike approach and an intense focus, the Bulldogs weren't too overly emotional or amped up for the contest, even if they were taking part in the CIF Southern Section playoffs.
Burbank just went out and got the job done, earning a 16-2 Division II first-round victory against former league foe Hart at Burbank High.
The Bulldogs (16-0) received outstanding performances from their three singles players, as the trio earned a sweep and only gave up nine games in the process.
"We did a little better than I expected," said Burbank Coach Paul McNiff, whose team is seeded fourth in the postseason after capturing the Pacific League championship. "This was a good way for us to open up the playoffs."
It was a good day all around for the Bulldogs, whose two set losses came in tiebreakers.
"We just looked at this playoff as just another match," said Burbank No. 1 singles Garn Sangsuriyakul, who won, 6-3, 6-0, 6-0. "We were hoping this was going to be a good warmup for us to start the playoffs. We just didn't want to get overconfident."
The win puts the Bulldogs into the second round against another undefeated team, Rio Mesa (17-0). The match will be at 3 p.m. today at Burbank.
This season, there were just eight undefeated teams in all divisions heading into the playoffs, and three are in the same quarter of the bracket in Division II.
The Spartans — who won the Pacific View League title — defeated Righetti, 12-6, in their postseason opener Thursday.
Burbank's focus and determination was evident early on Thursday, as it opened the first of three rounds by winning five of six sets.
Hart (12-8) placed third in the Foothill League this season. Last year, prior to Burbank's move from the Foothill to the Pacific League, the Indians defeated the Bulldogs twice, 10-8.
"This is a much better Burbank team than we saw last year," said Hart Coach Chris Mansfield, who has headed the program since 1980. "They are very consistent and they have some very good singles players … it's a good team."
Leading Burbank's singles charge was No. 3 player Pete Sangsuriyakul — Garn's younger brother — who won, 6-1, 6-0, 6-0. Arthur Karagezian won his sets, 7-5, 6-0, 6-0.
After struggling in its first set, earning a 7-6 (9-7) win, the Burbank No. 1 doubles team of Leo Kim and Tigran Yeremyan won its next set, 6-4, before John Skaf replaced Kim and the two won, 6-3. The No. 2 duo of Spencer Luciani and Vahe Vartunian also earned a sweep, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3.
"Sometimes our doubles teams have the tendency to play down to their opponents' level," McNiff said. "And that's something that really shouldn't happen because doubles is so precise."
