This week, the Biola men’s and women’s tennis teams were matched up against some tough competition. It is clear they never shy away from a new challenge but use the experience to further their progress.

Biola faced off against rival Azusa Pacific University on Thursday afternoon, March 10, and lost 8-1 on the men’s side, and 9-0 on the women’s. APU is ranked highly in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics with a No. 4 ranking on the men’s side and a No. 5 ranking on the women’s.

David Mossman wins in three-set match

The Eagles struggled to string together wins against APU; however, they did have a pleasing showing by sophomore David Mossman. After falling behind in his first set on Thursday, he regained composure to battle in his second set fighting off match point. In the third set, after a highly competitive third set, he pulled away in a tiebreaker 10-6. His work against No. 4 ranked APU gave him excellent experience. This season he has been facing opposing teams’ No. 2 players and has six wins and three losses.

Men gain several wins over Sewanee

On Friday March 11, Sewanee: The University of the South came into La Mirada for a match. Sewanee is a Division III school and plays in the Southern Collegiate Athletics Conference.

Against Sewanee, Mossman again had to fight to get the win. After losing his first set, he again persevered, dominated the next two sets and breezed to victory. In addition to Mossman’s victory, junior Weston Leopold also found success. Although he was matched up against Sewanee’s No. 1 player, he was able to focus and get the victory, also in three sets. He recognized early the strength of his competitor.

“I buckled down and worked through it, and ended up on top,” said Leopold.

It takes will to win –– especially after the length of this match, which lasted two hours and 30 minutes.

Other highlights came from seniors Dan Westman, and Ryan Adams, who faced off in doubles, battled and eventually came out on top.

Team hopes to improve conference records

Although the Biola team’s record has not been impressive (men are 3-6, women are 2-8) they are taking steps in the right direction. Biola plays in the top conference in the NAIA. The GSAC is home to six of the top 25 ranked tennis teams in both men’s and women’s tennis.

It is tough to put up a stellar conference record when facing off against top-10 level teams, but the experience is valuable every time. When these athletes can steal wins from some of the top players in the nation, it is an incredible boost to their confidence. This fearlessness will be crucial as the season progresses and matches intensify.

Biola picks up with conference play on March 16 with the women against No. 25 Westmont College, at Biola. On March 17, the men will travel up to Santa Barbara against the No. 7-ranked Westmont Warriors.