TENNIS: SAM IS NOT THE MAN: QUERREY GETS OUSTED FISH HANDS T.O. RESIDENT SEVENTH LOSS IN A ROW.

Byline: MATTHEW KREDELL

Staff Writer

The Sam-urais were out in full force, shirts off, chests painted and white headbands tied around their foreheads with "SAM" printed over a red Japanese sun.

They sat midcourt in the first row of the second level, shouting out encouragement and pounding the blue overhang on the rail in front when big points went the way of their hero.

At times -- when Sam Querrey found one of his big forehands or serves -- the 10 of them were louder than the rest of the crowd combined Tuesday at Los Angeles Tennis Center on the UCLA campus.

But those times were few as fellow American Mardy Fish ousted Querrey 7-5, 6-4 in the first round of the Countrywide Classic.

The 19-year-old Thousand Oaks resident slouched his 6-foot-6 frame in the interview chair after the match, speaking like a warrior who had brought dishonor to his people.

"It's frustrating," Querrey said. "You start to second-guess yourself. I was kind of nervous the whole time. I didn't play my greatest."

The pressure seems to be weighing on Querrey in his first full season as a professional.

The losses -- now seven in a row -- are adding up when so many people are looking to him to lead the next generation of American players on the heels of Andre Agassi's retirement.

Down to No. 91 in the world after peaking at No. 66 in April, he was hoping the hometown tournament in front of a large group of friends and family would be his time for a breakthrough.

Instead, he is out a round earlier than last year, when he played a month after high school graduation.

"I just got to win a match," Querrey said. "I haven't won one in a while."

Facing the sixth-seeded Fish, ranked No.40 in the world and his doubles partner in this tournament, the match was on serve after 10 games.

Up against break point on his serve, Querrey went for a forehand passing shot but Fish just got a piece of it and sent the ball back short to the crosscourt. The ball went off the net cord and over, seeming to disrupt Querrey, and his volley went into the net.

Querrey missed four break-point opportunities early in the second set before being broken in the ninth game. He had an opportunity to break back but Fish won the point with an overhead smash after a strong serve, then took the match when Querrey's backhand return went wide.

Afterward, Querrey said he was going to play a minor-league Challenger event later this month because, "I don't win matches on the ATP tour."

Another local player used the crowd support to much better results. Zach Fleishman, a 27-year-old who attended UCLA, won his first match over a top-10 player with a 7-6 (5), 6-4 upset of top seed Fernando Gonzalez.

Fleishman, ranked No. 162 in the world, broke the sixth-ranked Chilean player in the third game of the second set and used two service winners to put him away in the final game.

"This is the best win of my career," said Fleishman, mostly a minor- league Challenger tournament player who improved to 5-12 in ATP events. "The crowd I think single-handedly pulled me through."

Gonzalez said he was bothered by a sore lower back that required treatment during the match.

James Blake dispatched Alexander Peya of Austria 7-5, 6-4 in the first round.

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Photo:

Sam Querrey tries to run down a ball during his second-round loss to Mardy Fish on Tuesday in the Countrywide Classic at UCLA.

Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer