MALIBU, Calif. – California senior Billy Griffith advanced in singles and mixed doubles on Thursday at the Oracle ITA Masters. Teammate Jack Molloy also won in the opening singles round of 32, though the Golden Bear freshman lost in mixed doubles on Thursday.
 
The tournament's matches are being played at Pepperdine and at the Malibu Racquet Club.
 
The eighth-seeded Griffith, ranked 49th, defeated USC's Tanner Smith, 6-2, 6-2, while Molloy knocked off UNC Greensboro's Connor Thompson, 6-3, 6-4, to advance to the round of 16. On Friday, Griffith will play Drake's Vincent Gillespie at approximately 11 a.m. at Pepperdine, and Molloy will take on sixth-seeded Harrison Scott of Texas at about 12:30 p.m. at Pepperdine.
 
In mixed doubles, the fifth-seeded pair of Griffith and North Carolina's Alle Sanford won twice, beating New Mexico State's Christofer Goncalves and Seattle's Michelle Lui, 7-6(4), in the opening round of 32 and then topping Arizona State's Michael Geerts and Pepperdine's Laura Gulbe, 6-3, to reach the quarterfinals. On Friday, Griffith and Sanford will face Smith and McCarthy at 10 a.m. in the quarters at Pepperdine.
 
The fourth-seeded Molloy and Winthrop's Lauren Proctor opened with a victory over Western Michigan's Kennosuke Nouchi and Jackson State's Tyler Smith, 6-0. But they fell to USC's Smith and Duke's Kaitlyn McCarthy, 6-3, in the round of 16.
 
The Oracle ITA Masters will conclude on Sunday.
 
Another group of Bears will play in the Battle in the Bay Classic from Friday through Sunday at the California Tennis Club in San Francisco.