IRVINE, Calif. – Academy of Art’s Monika Stanikova and Sonoma State’s Nate Oppenheim are the PacWest Players of the Week after each beating some of the top-ranked players in the West Region at No. 1 singles to lead their respective teams to a pair of victories in another rain-effected week.
 
On the men’s side, only six matches were played all week, but a couple of the matches had big playoff implications. Azusa Pacific, Hawai`i Hilo and Hawai`i Pacific have all made strong starts to the season, meaning the battle for the four spots in the NCAA West Regional is going to be tough.
 
UC San Diego and Point Loma both made the tournament last year they faced each other on Friday, where the Tritons won 5-2 despite Thomas Dafcik’s dominant 6-4, 6-1 win at No. 1 singles. Sonoma State and Concordia each narrowly missed qualifying for the postseason last year and they also played each other on Friday. Sonoma State’s Nicky Valdecanas won 3-6, 6-1, 6-1 at No. 6 singles to clinch a dramatic 4-3 win.
 
On Sunday, Somona State added another big win by sweeping UC San Diego, 4-0, to strengthen their case for a playoff spot. UC San Diego bounced back quickly on Monday with a 4-3 win against Concordia.
 
Concordia will return to action on Saturday, hosting Azusa Pacific, while Point Loma will travel to Sonoma State. The Sea Lions won the last meeting with Sonoma State, 5-1, with Dafcik earning a 6-2, 7-5 win against Oppenheim.
 
On the women’s side, Academy of Art has continued to turn heads with its strong results. The Urban Knights swept Concordia and only lost one match to Cal State LA for a 6-1 win. Stanikova along with sisters Alma and Klara Thell-Lenntorp are all undefeated in the top-3 spots in the singles lineup.
 
On Saturday, Point Loma pulled out a 4-3 win against Stanislaus State. The Warriors got a win at No. 1 singles with Cassidy Ferrell, beating Shelby Groeneveld, 6-3, 6-3, but the Sea Lions lower half of the lineup dominated singles play clinching the match before Stanislaus State had won a point.
 
Clarisa Colling clinched Sonoma State’s 4-3 win over Concordia with a 7-6(3), 2-6, 7-5 win at No. 2 singles. However, Ghazal Pakbaten won at No. 1 singles for the Eagles. The No. 3 player in the West Region defeated No. 2 Jensyn Warren, 6-2, 4-6, 6-0.
 
This week, Concordia will play four matches, visiting Cal State LA on Wednesday before returning home to host Fresno Pacific, Northeastern State and Azusa Pacific. Fresno Pacific will also visit Biola during its trip to southern California. Academy of Art will host Stanislaus State and Point Loma will host Sonoma State on Saturday.
 
WOMEN’S TENNIS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Monika Stanikova, Academy of Art
Sr. – Trencin, Slovakia/Fashion Marketing
A week after beating the No. 2 player in the West Region, Stanikova also took out the No. 3 singles player in the West Region to strengthen her spot as the top-ranked player in the region. Stanikova defeated Concordia’s Ghazal Pakbaten 6-4, 6-3 for her second career win over Concordia’s No. 1 singles player. The win helped lead the Urban Knights to a 7-0 triumph over the Eagles. On Sunday, the senior continued her winning streak by beating Cal State LA’s Amanda Schneider by the exact same score, 6-4, 6-3. She also won her No. 2 doubles set alongside Paula Alcantara, 7-6(3). Academy of Art beat the Golden Eagles 6-1 to improve to 3-0 on the season.
 
MEN’S TENNIS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Nate, Oppenheim, Sonoma State
Sr. – Sebastopol, Calif./Orchard View HS
Oppenheim led Sonoma State to two victories against West Region teams to improve to 4-1 on the season. On Friday, the senior partnered with Max Nudell to win at No. 1 doubles, 6-3. He then won at No. 1 singles against Concordia’s Nikita Katsnelson to tie the match at 3-3 before the Seawolves went on the clinch the victory, 4-3. Then on Sunday, Sonoma State defeated UC San Diego for the second time in a row after snapping an 18-year long losing streak to the Tritons last year. Oppenheim and Nudell won their doubles match 7-6(3). Then in singles, Oppenheim defeated Marc Isaiah, 6-3, 6-1.