IRVINE, Calif. – Azusa Pacific's three freshman phenoms, Tina Moser, Stina Larsson and Karola Suviste, all got their first taste of a third and deciding set in college tennis on the same day and all three passed with flying colors. Their three-set triumphs provided three of the Cougars' five points as Azusa Pacific women's tennis earned a 5-1 win over Concordia on Saturday morning at the CUI Tennis Courts.
 
"Concordia has a strong record this year, so we were nervous coming down here," Suviste said. "As a freshman, all these teams are new to me, but my teammates told me that this was a going to be a big challenge, so I wanted to be ready for it. We just wanted to play our best and it went well."
 
Azusa Pacific pulled out a tough doubles point against the Golden Eagles with Moser and Shannele Lopez taking No. 3 doubles 6-4 before four singles wins gave Azusa Pacific the victory. The Cougars have now won seven matches in a row to start the year, while the Golden Eagles drop to 3-3 after suffering a second-consecutive loss to a PacWest opponent.
 
After taking the doubles point, Concordia evened the score with Sophie Rachor, the No. 1 seed in the Fall ITA West Regional, topped Vini Bautista 6-2, 6-3. However, the Cougars regained the lead with the help of a dominant performance from Julia Jordan. Azusa Pacific's veteran won at No. 2 singles 6-0, 6-3 to make the overall score 2-1.
 
Suviste got off to a slow start against an experienced opponent in Alicia da Re, who won the first set by taking the last two games after a medical timeout. The Golden Eagles' No. 4 singles player then raced out to a 4-1 lead in the second set.
 
"The start of the match was rough," Suviste said. "I couldn't find the rhythm and Alicia was playing really well. She wasn't making many mistakes, and I was trying to figure out the right way to play against her, but things were going quickly. I heard Julia won her match and that gave me a lot of confidence that I could come back."
 
Suviste did more than come back. She completed flipped the match on its head winning five games in a row to take the second set. Then she dominated the third set, winning 6-1, as she won 11 of the final 12 games in the match for her sixth singles win this season. She took the match 3-6, 6-4, 6-1.
 
"Coach [Mark Bohren] told me to take the pressure off myself and support the team," Suviste said. "I tried to be focused on Stina on the court next to me and supporting her and the rest of the team between points. It took the pressure off myself and my unforced errors reduced. I just kept that mindset for the rest of the match and it worked for me."
 
With a 2-1 lead, Larsson put the Cougars within a point of victory. She had to serve to stay in the first set but got a big hold and then immediately broke at 5-all and held again to take the opening set. She dropped her first set of the season in the second, but she proved her resilience against a tricky opponent, beating Bryn Johnson 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 to clinch the win.
 
Since there are only four courts at Concordia, Tina Moser had to wait until a match finished to get on court and she didn't waste any time, winning the first set 6-1. Cheyenne Houkes bounced back well at the start of the second set and did enough to hold on for a 6-4 win. In the match tiebreaker, Moser fell behind early but came roaring back by winning seven of the last nine points to win the match 6-1, 4-6, 10-6.
 
Lopez's match was left unfinished after splitting the first two sets. Lopez won the first set 6-2 and led 4-1 in the second set, but wasn't permitted to finish the match with the overall result already clinched.
 
In doubles, the freshman duo of Larsson and Suviste got a strong start with a 6-1 win. Concordia took No. 1 doubles, but Moser and Lopez clinched the first point of the match, which proved to be a big advantage for getting the road win.
 
"We got to try some new formations today, using Australian and I-Formation," Suviste added. "When I played junior tennis in Europe, there weren't opportunities to develop doubles strategy, so it was fun for me to try out some new tactics, and I think they worked well."
 
Azusa Pacific now has a week to prepare for rival Biola, which is off to a hot start this season. The Eagles are 4-1 on the year and will come to Azusa on Saturday with first serve scheduled for 10 a.m.