AZUSA, Calif. – Continually building on their early season momentum, the Cougars put a quality win under their belts.
On a chilly and breezy Wednesday afternoon against the foothills Azusa Pacific knocked off Emory, the top NCAA Division III program, 6-3.
The win continues the sixth ranked Cougars perfect start to the season after 14 matches.
DOUBLES: The Cougars nearly took a 3-0 lead with a late rally before settling on a one-match lead heading into the singles portion of the contest.
In the No. 2 position Antonio Pejic and Jakob Schnaitter took a 5-0 lead and were never threaten as they posted an 8-2 win. The top match was tightly played even though the duo of Christian Schmid and Oliver Frank got up an early break. The pair had chances to go up two breaks but could not convert. None the less, they did break serve to win the match by an 8-5 count.
The final match on the courts looked grim early for the Cougars as Ryan Nuno and Jesse Haas fell behind 4-1 and 6-3. However, they rallied to force a tiebreaker at 7-7 but the Emory duo took the early lead in the tiebreak and won the breaker 7-5.
SINGLES: There were six players sporting a top 50 national ranking heading into singles play. Five of the six contests were decided in straight sets.
Schnaitter was the first match complete as the he posted a 6-0, 6-1 win at the No. 3 position. The 26th ranked player in NCAA DII improves his record to 12-0 in his first collegiate season. He has not lost a match when playing in the third slot.
Frank, listed second in the most recent NCAA DII singles ranking, played solidly throughout in knocking off the NCAA DIII's fourth-ranked player, Jonathan Jemison, 6-3, 6-4 in the top match. The No. 2 slot also featured a pair of nationally ranked competitors. Ninth ranked Schmid was strong from the baseline in pounding past No. 40 Hayden Cassone 6-2, 6-3.
Andrew Harrtinton nudged past Nuno 6-3, 6-3 in a tightly played contest at the fifth position. Alan Leahy got the Cougars final win with a 6-0, 7-6 (3) triumph at the No. 6 slot. The last match on the court saw No. 44 Adrien Bouchet tally a 7-6 (1), 5-7, 10-7 win for Emory.
QUOTEABLE: "Today we played big points well in doubles which carried over into singles which helped us. We always struggle with Emory so to beat them is a good win. They are a good program," head coach Mark Bohren said.
"I didn't think we'd be 14-0 because this is weird sport where you get injuries and other teams are improving but we are a talented and experienced team. This team is headed in the right direction. Our depth has help keep us healthy and we are playing as well as we can at this point."
