AZUSA, Calif. – Azusa Pacific faced a stern test to start the 2023 season, and Vini Bautista came through in her regular season debut as a Cougar, clinching the match with a 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 win at No. 3 singles to lift the Cougars to a 4-3 victory over No. 4 Pomona-Pitzer on Saturday at the Cougar Tennis Complex.
 
Head coach Mark Bohren got a good look at where his team stands to start the year, taking on a top-5 team in NCAA Division III. Bautista lost her first set and the Cougars dropped two of the singles matches in straight sets. However, the freshman mounted an impressive comeback, taking the second set by a two-break margin to force a decider. In the final set, she won 6-4 to give the Cougars a winning start to the season.
 
Eleonora Liga got a key win for Azusa Pacific at No. 1 singles, beating the No. 6 player in NCAA Division III Angie Zhou. Liga cruised through the first set 6-2 but had her serve broken late in the second set to force a deciding set. Liga responded quickly to the disappointment of the second set by winning six games in a row to win the seesaw battle 6-2, 5-7, 6-0. That win gave the Cougars three points, which set Bautista up to clinch the match.
 
The Cougars' first singles point came from Wong, who showed why she is ranked No. 34 in the nation. She won at No. 4 singles 6-0, 7-6(4), fighting her way through a tricky second set. It is Wong's 56^th career singles win at Azusa Pacific, which ranks sixth in Azusa Pacific history, and is the third most by a Cougar in the NCAA era behind only Emily Harris and Natalie Johnson.
 
Azusa Pacific won the doubles point, which proved to be crucial for the result of the match. It was clinched by Katia Betancourt and Katherine Nguyen, who won in a tiebreaker 7-6(5) to win the point. Liga and Madison Kane won the other doubles set 6-2 at the No. 1 position. The Cougars' No. 1 duo, which is ranked No. 3 in the nation, is now 14-3 in duel matches going back to last year.
 
In singles, Kane fell in a tough battle against Nina Ye, who won the No. 2 position, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6(6) after the match had already been clinched. Pomona Pitzer also got wins from Marissa Markey over Miruna Tudor at No. 5 singles, and Amelia Poor won against Shannele Lopez at No. 6 singles. Both Tudor and Lopez were making their debuts for the Cougars.
 
The Cougars have now started their seasons with wins in two of the last three years. They will now get on a plane and fly to Hawai`i for a pair of matches against PacWest opponents. It will be the team's first trip to Hawai`i since 2013 when the PacWest Championships were hosted in Oahu. The first match will be a rematch of the last two PacWest finals as Azusa Pacific takes on Hawai`i Pacific. The Cougars defeated the Sharks both in 2021 and 2022 to win the PacWest titles. The rematch is set for 2 p.m. HT on February 11.