Unlv’s Smith Wins Tennis Title

UNLV’s Luke Smith, a hard-serving senior from Australia, defeated Southern California’s George Bastl 6-4, 6-3 in an all-foreign final to win the NCAA Division I men’s singles championship.

It was the first NCAA tennis title in UNLV’s history, and only the fourth individual NCAA championship ever for the Las Vegas school, which had two NCAA titlists in track and one in golf.

“It’s great for our school,” tennis coach Larry Easley said. “We’ve had a lot of trouble in the last couple of years.”

UNLV’s last national title came in 1990 with the scandal-ridden men’s basketball program, which has been investigated by the NCAA.