ISLE FILE
HPU teams advance in NCAA DII tennis
Advertiser Staff
Elena Hudzikova and Tinka Mihova teamed for a doubles victory, then won singles matches to help Hawai'i Pacific beat Hawai'i-Hilo, 5-2, yesterday in an NCAA Division II Championship women's tennis second-round match at Patsy T. Mink Central O'ahu Regional Park.
The 16th-ranked Sea Warriors improved to 21-7 and advanced to the Round of 16 at Houston, May 14 to 17. HPU is ranked No. 2 in the West Region rankings.
The 19th-ranked Vulcans, who are No. 3 in the West Region, finished the season 14-12.
Hudzikova and Mihova beat Justine Abella and Stephanie Tadaki, 8-2, at No. 3 doubles. Nina Mihova and Anastasia Ageychik also won a doubles point for the Sea Warriors.
Hudzikova then beat Susan Souksavath, 2-6, 6-2, 6-2, and Mihova defeated Abella, 6-0, 6-1. Lauren Shin's singles victory helped give HPU an insurmountable 5-2 lead as two other singles matches were halted at that point.
MEN'S TENNIS
HPU ADVANCES, BUT BYU-HAWAI'I DOES NOT
The ninth-ranked Hawai'i Pacific men's tennis team advanced to the third round by sweeping Sonoma State, 5-0, in its second-round NCAA Division II Championship match at Patsy T. Mink Central O'ahu Regional Park yesterday.
The Sea Warriors go into the Round of 16 with a 19-1 record, the only loss coming against University of Hawai'i. The Seawolves' season ended 9-13.
HPU swept the three doubles matches and moved ahead 4-0 when Daniel Luedi defeated Connor Olsen, 6-2, 6-1. Nikola Petrov clinched the winning point by defeating Brett McNulty, 6-3, 6-1. HPU was up a set in the remaining matches, which were not finished.
The Sea Warriors move on to Houston for the Round of 16, Wednesday on the Rice University campus.
Meanwhile, the Brigham Young-Hawai'i men's team saw its season end In La Jolla, Calif. when it lost to 18th-ranked UC San Diego, 5-0, also in the second round. The 28th-ranked Seasiders ended their season 8-3.
After sweeping doubles, the Tritons (11-11) got wins at Nos. 2 and 3 singles to finish the match.
Hawai'i Pacific is No. 1 in the West Region rankings, followed by UC San Diego and BYUH.
SURFING
DESOTO DEFEATS SNOW IN ALL-HAWAI'I HEAT
Duane DeSoto of 'Ewa defeated Ned Snow of the Big Island yesterday in an all-Hawai'i heat of the third round of the Oxbow WLT longboard surfing contest.
Twelve of the 16 heats in the third round were completed yesterday in 2- to 3-foot waves at Les Dunes, Anglet, France. The contest was postponed in the early afternoon when conditions deteriorated.
DeSoto took control of the heat midway through when he received a score of 8.0 (out of 10). DeSoto's two best waves received a total score of 14.35 to Snow's 13.0.
"It is always special to surf against a fellow Hawaiian in competition," DeSoto said. "You always want to win, but we had a balanced heat and it was fun. In the end, the priority for me is to get through, and I did, so I am happy."
DeSoto advanced to the fourth round, while Snow was eliminated. DeSoto will face defending world champion Phil Rajzman of Brazil in the fourth round.
Hawai'i surfers Kekoa Uemura and Dino Miranda were also eliminated yesterday.
California's Taylor Jensen had a near-perfect heat, receiving a two-wave score of 19.4 (out of 20) to defeat Uemura.
Fellow Hawai'i surfers Bonga Perkins and Kai Sallas have yet to complete their respective third-round heats.
