MTEN starts SoCal trip with win at Azusa

Friday, January 18

Azusa, Calif.

1 p.m. PT

Abilene Christian

Azusa Pacific

1/18/2019 11:54:00 PM | Men's Tennis

ABILENE – Abilene Christian men's tennis (1-1) started its three-match swing through Southern California Friday with a 5-2 win over Azusa Pacific – the No. 13 ranked team in NCAA DII Athletics. The Cougars are coming off a 28-3 season, in which they advanced to the national semifinals.

Azusa Pacific started the dual with a sweep of doubles but won only one of the six singles contests as the Wildcats were twice victorious in two matches, and settled three additional contests in the third set.

Senior Josh Sheehy and redshirt junior Sebastian Langdon won at No. 1 and 6 singles in the third set after both lost the second set. Sheehy beat No. 9 Jakob Schnaitter at the top level, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3, while Langdon edged Dillon Barnard, 6-0, 5-7, 6-4, for his first spring-season singles victory since April 2017. Langdon redshirted the entirety of the 2017-18 season, and has two years of eligibility remaining.

Freshman Riley Tran also pushed his match at No. 4 to a third set after dropping the first set, 2-6, to Leyton Bohren. Tran won the second set, 6-2, and then Bohren retired in the final set with the score in the Wildcats' favor, 4-2.

ACU's straight set wins at No. 3 and 5 came courtesy of junior Nikolas Moceanu and freshman Dimitris Azoides. Moceanu beat Ronald Kang, 6-0, 6-4, and Azoides – a mid-year transfer from Cyprus – beat Jesse Haas, 6-4, 7-6 (4).

The Wildcats return to action Saturday at 5:30 p.m. / 3:30 p.m. CT for a dual vs. Pepperdine. ACU also has a match Sunday scheduled against No. 9 Texas A&M.