IRVINE, Calif.--University of Hawai'i men's tennis player Adriano Dzhenev earned Big West Player of the Week honors after a strong showing against 30th-ranked UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly. It is the sophomore's first weekly conference honor and the third for the Rainbow Warriors, joining Azuma Visaya (Jan. 14) and Timothy Li (Feb. 18).

In doubles action, Dzhenev and partner Kent Mueller clinched the doubles point vs. UCSB (March 26), holding off the Gauchos' Diogo Morais and Lorenzo Brunkow by a break, 6-4 on Court #3. Then, against Cal Poly (March 28), Dzhenev and Mueller played at the #2 spot for the first time this season. The UH duo were leading 6-5 against the Mustangs' Sean Kamyshev and Aaron Eliscu when the doubles point was clinched elsewhere, leaving their match unfinished but in a winning position.

Dzhenev has proved to be one of the toughest outs in the Rainbow Warriors' lineup, but both his matches went unfinished. Against UCSB, the UCF transfer was In a grueling #4 singles match against Miguel Avendano, Dzhenev battled back after dropping the first set to force a third. The match was on-serve in the third frame when the match was decided, leaving his match unfinished, 3-6, 6-3, 3-3. Against Cal Poly, Dzhenev played at No. 3 for the first time this season, facing Raz Haviv. After winning the first set, Dzhenev fell in the second frame and was up in the third when the overall match was finished, 6-3, 2-6, 2-1