SAN DIEGO, Calif. - For the third-consecutive season, the Cougars have secured a spot at Nationals. The Cougars punched their ticket to the round of 16 in Florida after earning a 4-0 road win over Point Loma on Saturday afternoon in a Regional match. The Cougars are now 21-2 overall, and their victory this afternoon avenged their lone regular season loss of the year, which was a 4-3 defeat at Point Loma on February 10.
Vini Bautista and
Julia Jordan were ready to roll from the jump, as the Cougars' No. 2 doubles pairing won five consecutive games to turn a 1-1 tie into a 6-1 victory.
Madison Kane and
Miruna Tudor, who are currently ranked No. 1 in the national doubles rankings, got out to a 4-1 lead, but the Sea Lions would fight back to knot it at 4-4. Kane and Tudor would bounce back and deliver when it mattered most, as they won the next two games for a 6-4 win that clinched the crucial doubles point.
Kane would then set the tone of singles at No. 1, where she simply outplayed and overwhelmed Point Loma's Amanda Letzring, taking all 12 games played for a 6-0, 6-0 shutout sweep to put Azusa Pacific ahead 2-0 overall. Kane and Letzring played one another back on February 10, and in that matchup, Kane battled to a 7-6, 7-6 win. Kane is now 18-3 this season, and all but one of those victories have been in straight-sets, and she has earned four victories without losing a game over the two sets.
Shannele Lopez delivered the third point of the day for Azusa Pacific, as she knocked off Melissa Zirkle in straight-sets (6-3, 6-3) at No. 6. Lopez also improved her record to 18-3 this season, and she has won in straight-sets 16 times.
Julia Jordan stepped up as the match-clincher for the Cougars, as she handled business at No. 2. Jordan was tied 1-1 in the first set when she went on to win four straight games, and she wrapped up the set with a 6-3 victory. Jordan then found herself down by a 3-5 score in the second set, but once again she took four consecutive games from Thelma Sepulveda, this time resulting in a 7-5 second-set win to clinch the match and punch the Cougars' ticket to Florida. Jordan is now 12-4 at No. 2 this season.
"This was a great win for us. As we saw earlier in the year, Point Loma is a good team and this can be a tough place to play," said head coach Mark Bohren,"After that loss in February, we talked as a team that it is not about how we are playing early, but what matters is how we perform at the end of the season. The girls have really taken that to heart, and they have continued to improve and push one another. Our performance today showed how far we have come. It was amazing watching this team compete and earn their spot at Nationals."
Up Next: The Cougars will find out who their round of 16 opponent will be on Wednesday, May 15, which is when the draw will be held. Stay tuned to APUCougars.com for updates on Nationals in the upcoming week.
