AZUSA, Calif. – With the top-2 players in the lineup unavailable to play on Saturday morning, every player in the Azusa Pacific lineup moved up two spots leaving the third doubles and sixth singles slots vacant, but that didn't pose a problem for the Cougars, who won 6-1 against Westmont at the Munson & Bavougian Tennis Complex.
 
No. 17 Azusa Pacific had all five singles players playing at their highest position so far this season simultaneously, but the Cougars still won all five matches. Katherine Nguyen completed what was a sweep apart from the forfeited match with her 6-4, 2-6, 10-8 victory at No. 2 singles.
 
"Throughout this season we have always had someone that isn't as healthy as others, but today was a new challenge," Nguyen said. "The coaches have given us chances to prove ourselves and that was especially the case today. I think we showed our strength and our depth in this win, and we are getting closer to time for the PacWest Championships."
 
Azusa Pacific improved to 14-2 on the season, completing the season sweep against Westmont, which drops to 4-13. The Cougars now have a six-match winning streak and have not lost a completed singles match in any of those matches except the 4-3 win over Biola.
 
"My freshman year was such a good year, because that was the year that both men and women won the PacWest Tennis Championships," Nguyen said. "I'm the only player left on the team that was part of that special season, so I want to see that happen again. We are getting closer, and I think it is something achievable this year."
 
After winning the PacWest title in 2022, the Cougars got back to the PacWest Championships final each of the next two years. Azusa Pacific finished as runner-up in both 2023 and 2024 against Hawai`i Pacific and Academy of Art.
 
"This year, we have the team to prove that we can win," Nguyen said. "The fact that we lost the final the last couple years, we have that goal to get it done this time. I think even with the circumstances we are in right now, we have the talent to do it."
 
The Cougars needed to win both doubles sets against Westmont after having to forfeit the third doubles set, and they did just that. Shannele Lopez and Tina Moser won at No. 2 doubles, 6-2, improving to 6-1 as a team this season. Then Stina Larsson and Karola Suviste clinched the win at No. 1 doubles, 6-4, breaking to win the set. They are now 12-1 on the season and undefeated at 6-0 in the No. 1 doubles position.
 
Larsson and Suviste then both won their singles matches on adjacent courts in under an hour each. In fact, Larsson won in just 45 minutes in her debut at No. 1 singles without dropping a single game. She extended her lead in the PacWest for singles wins this season with 15. Suviste reached 14 singles wins this season shortly after, 6-0, 6-2. It's already the sixth time this year that Suviste has won a match while giving up two or less games.
 
Lopez clinched the victory for the Cougars with her 6-1, 6-2 win over Sabina Salva, bouncing back with impressive form after suffering her first loss of the season on Wednesday. She is now 8-1 on the season after picking up her second win against Salva.
 
Moser made the lead 5-1 for the team after coming through a tough match against Justie Spitzer. Moser hit her backhand well throughout the match to handle the depth of Spitzer's groundstrokes. She fought through the first set in a tiebreaker, which she won 7-3. With a set under her belt, Moser found some of her best form this season in the second set and cruised to victory in the end, 7-6(3), 6-1. She now has a four-match winning streak after winning her first career match at No. 4 singles.
 
Nguyen made a strong start to her match, taking an early lead and held on for the opening set 6-4 against Lauren Gee. However, Gee bounced back in the second set to win it 6-2, forcing Nguyen into a familiar position with her eighth three-set match of the year.
 
"She has really good hands," Nguyen said about Gee. "Usually, I feel like my speed helps me to handle that. Today, I started better, but I had trouble with closing. Then, I didn't start well in the second set, and she beat me there."
 
In the super tiebreaker, Nguyen earned the early lead, including a forehand passing shot winner for an exclamation point for an early lead.
 
"I had a better mindset in the third set, because I don't think it was the best in the second set," Nguyen said. "I have been in a lot of tiebreakers before, so I was just trying to use my experience to get ahead in the score and that gave me confidence to play, and that was key."
 
That lead suddenly disappeared when Gee came roaring back in the superbreaker to tie it, 8-all. Under pressure, Nguyen produced her best tennis to win the final two points of the match to complete the 6-4, 2-6, 10-8 win.
 
"When it got to 8-all, I was just depending on my experience," Nguyen added. "This is my last year so there is no point in leaving regrets on the court. With the amount of third sets I've played, I've gotten better in those pressure moments at just relaxing and playing the same way I practice."

Nguyen earned her ninth win of the season. It was the first time in Nguyen's long and successful career at Azusa Pacific that she played No. 2 singles, and now she is undefeated at that slot in the lineup.
 
The Cougars next play against Concordia at home on Tuesday with first serve scheduled for 3:30 p.m. The Golden Eagles were ranked No. 3 in the PacWest Championships rankings, while Azusa Pacific is No. 1. Tuesday's result will factor into the next set of rankings. The Cougars won the first meeting between the two teams, 5-1, back in February.