Box Score KOHALA COAST, Hawai`i- The No. 21 Azusa Pacific men's tennis team's season came to a memorable end as the Cougars reached the West Regional match in the NCAA Division II Men's Tennis Championships against the No. 15 Hawai'i Hilo Vulcans.
The match found the Cougars on the wrong side of a 5-1 decision as the Vulcans came out victorious in the Preliminary Round of the NCAA Championships to advance to the round of 16 in Altamonte Springs, Florida. APU's successful season ends 23-4 while the Vulcans improve 13-4 overall.
The two teams previously split a pair of matches earlier this season, as APU won 4-3 at home during the regular season while Hawai'i Hilo answered back in the PacWest Conference Tournament, 4-1.
Starting doubles, the Vulcans grabbed the first set win at the top spot where Martin Soukal and Vaclav Slezak downed the tandem of
Jakob Schnaitter and
Jesse Haas, 6-4. The Cougars didn't let up and answered back on court three with a 7-6 (3) win from
Ethan Smith and
Ronald Kang over UHH's Alessandro Giuliato and Chun En Wu. With all eyes at the No. 2 spot,
Ryan Nuno and
Leyton Bohren won 7-6 (3) to put the first point on the board leading 1-0 into singles.
Heading into singles, the Vulcans didn't let up and struck first with a 6-1, 6-1 win from No. 26 Alessandro Giuliato over APU's
Ryan Nuno on court two. At the No. 3 position, No. 47 Martin Soukal claimed the next point for UHH with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over
Ronald Kang. Leading 2-1, Arturo Dell'Eva added another point to the score with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over APU's
Jesse Haas at the No. 5 spot. Luca Checchia defeated
Marnix Pluim at the No. 6 slot 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 before
Leyton Bohren lost in a three set series against Chun En Wu 6-4, 1-6, 1-6 at the No. 4 position. With En Wu's victory, the Vulcans clinched the Preliminary Round match 5-1 to advance to the NCAA Championships.
The Cougars concludes their 2019 season 23-4. Throughout the season, the Cougars beat five nationally ranked opponents.
