KOHALA COAST, Hawai'i — No. 13 Azusa Pacific delivered a commanding performance Friday afternoon, sweeping Hawai'i Hilo 7–0 at the Mauna Kea Resort Seaside Racquet Club. The dual was originally scheduled for Hilo but was relocated to the Kohala Coast.
The Cougars (6–1) secured the doubles point with wins on two of three courts. The nationally ranked No. 15 tandem of Stina Larsson and Karola Suviste set the tone with a dominant 6–0 victory at No. 1 doubles. Vini Bautista and Mariana Reveles Arreola followed with a 7–5 win at No. 3 to clinch the point.
Order of finish (doubles): 1, 2, 3
Singles play featured both depth and drama.
At No. 5 singles, Kimberly Tran was first off the court with a decisive 6–2, 6–1 win, quickly followed by straight-set victories from Vini Bautista at No. 2 and Melis Mert at No. 6. Shannele Lopez added another point at No. 4 with a 7–6 (7–4), 6–2 performance.
The most thrilling match of the afternoon came at the top of the lineup, where No. 45 Stina Larsson battled back after dropping the opening set to defeat Johanna Roggenkamp 4–6, 6–4, 13–11 in a dramatic super tiebreak. Karola Suviste also went the distance at No. 3, earning a three-set win to complete the sweep.
Order of finish (singles): 5, 2, 6, 4, 3, 1
With the victory, Azusa Pacific moves to 6–1 overall while Hawai'i Hilo drops to 1–2 on the season.
Key Stats & Notes
- Suviste and Tran have now started the year 7-0 in singles play.
- Larsson and Roggenkamp's three-set battle would last two hours and 31 minutes.
- Suviste has not been beaten in 23 straight singles matches dating back to last year.
