The Concordia men's and women's tennis teams are making the return to Surprise, Ariz. this week with the title of the PacWest Championship on the line.
 
The PacWest Championships have been in Surprise for the last six seasons with the Eagles making the trip all four years since joining the conference. When Concordia made the trip in 2018, the men's team had its best finish as they took down the third seed to finish in third place while the women took sixth.
 
Tournament play begins on Wednesday, Apr. 17 as the sixth-seeded Eagles take on No.11 seed Biola at 9 a.m. in the first round. The winner of this match-up will face No. 3 seed Azusa Pacific in the quarterfinals on Thursday, Apr. 18 at 1 p.m.
 
The CUI men start the tournament as the No. 5 seed and take on the No. 4 seed Sonoma State on Thursday, Apr. 18 at 9 a.m. in the quarterfinals. The winner moves on to the semifinals on Friday, Apr. 19 at 9 a.m. to face the winner of Hawaii Pacific/Holy Names.
 
EAGLE WATCH
The CUI men's team finished off on a good note, winning its final two games of the regular season. Freshman Yassine Smiej has moved his way up the line-up starting at third singles and has progressed to the top spot. He has accumulated a 10-5 record, including five straight wins to start the season. Smiej and Thomas Kyle held down the third doubles spot where they had an 8-5 overall record. Kyle has also had success in singles, posting a 10-4 record. Otto Heinz is on a winning streak as he has won six of his last nine singles matches (three unfinished) and has not accumulated a loss since Feb. 25.
 
Ghazal Pakbaten headlines the women's team as the sophomore currently holds a No. 19 ranking in singles with a 12-4 record. She and partner Johanna Keeline have also been dominating in doubles as the duo was once nationally ranked as high as No. 45. Although they are not currently ranked, the pair has accumulated a team-best 12-3 record. Senior Samantha Schuster has played with multiple doubles partners but has still found success to collect 11 wins in doubles to go along with her seven singles wins at the fives. Also finding her groove was transfer Lisa Suzuki who owns nine singles wins and six doubles victories.
 
ABOUT SONOMA STATE (M)
The Seawolves hold a 9-5 record heading into the tournament and are currently ranked No. 35 in the nation. Playing at the one's doubles court, the duo of Nate Oppenheim and Max Nudell entered the rankings as the No. 46 doubles pair. Due to multiple cancellations, Sonoma State has faced three PacWest opponents, including a meeting with Concordia that went in favor of the Seawolves by a score of 4-3.
 
ABOUT BIOLA (W)
In its second season in the PacWest, the Eagles are playing in the PacWest Championships for the first time. Biola enters the tournament with a 9-10 record and has faced Concordia once this season with CUI coming out on top 4-0. Nine players have seen action this season for the Eagles led by Lauren Lee who has a 9-5 singles record after playing in each flight. The duo of Ines Diaz and Allison Torres have accumulated the most wins for Biola at doubles with an 8-8 overall record. The duo has a 7-4 record at the threes, the most successful court for the Eagles.
 
COVERAGE
To locate match results of the PacWest Tennis Championships, follow @ThePacWest on Twitter for game-by-game results.