SURPRISE, Ariz. - Azusa Pacific now advances to PacWest Tournament finals after defeating nationally ranked No. 14 Concordia 4-1. The Cougars return to the PacWest championship match for the sixth time in program history. 

Azusa Pacific snagged two of the three doubles matches as they secured a point to put themselves up 1-0. Jakob Schnaitter and Leyton Bohren snagged their 15th win of the season as a pairing, with a quick victory at No. 1. Schnaitter and Bohren cruised to a 6-1 win. The Eagles would not make it easy at No. 2 and No. 3, however. Both those matchups needed a tiebreak set as Concordia went on to take the No. 3 matchup 7-6 (7-4). A battle now ensued at No. 2 to determine the doubles point recipient. Ryan Nuno and Sam Sippel would prevail with a hard-fought 7-6 (7-2) victory. Despite being down 1-0 on the match, the Eagles had confidence heading into singles following the victory at No. 3 and the close battle at No. 2. 

Nuno got the ball rolling for the Cougars at No. 3 to now put all the momentum in favor of Azusa Pacific. He claimed victory in straight sets 6-4, 6-0. Following right behind Nuno was Schnaitter at No. 1. He impressed and coasted to a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Smiej of Concordia. The Eagles would claim a point at No. 5 to make the score 3-1. 

The ticket to the PacWest Tournament championship on Saturday would be punched by Cole Rassner at No. 6. Rassner played an excellent two sets and won in 6-3, 6-1 fashion. Rassner's eighth win of the season was a significant one, and helped lift the Cougars over No. 4 seed Concordia. 

Top seed Azusa Pacific will now make their sixth PacWest Tournament finals appearance since first competing in the tournament in 2013. Their last appearance in the championship match was in 2018, when the Cougars went on to be crowned PacWest Champions. Azusa Pacific will face No. 2 seed Hawai'i Hilo tomorrow (Saturday, April 24) at 9:00 AM in Surprise, Arizona. The Cougars will look for payback as they fell to the Vulcans in the 2019 PacWest Tournament semifinals. The Cougar's season was then ended by Hawai'i Hilo in that same year in the NCAA West Regional. The Cougars defeated the Vulcans in the lone matchup of the 2021 season (March 6) by a score of 4-3.The Vulcans hold a national ranking of No. 12 while the Cougars stand at No. 7. The live scoring link will be available on the schedule page.