(SAN DIEGO) With a 7-0 Senior Day victory over Arizona Christian on Friday, No. 24 PLNU Men's Tennis not only honored its seniors in a fitting way but also tied the single-season program record for wins with its 16th victory of the season.
 
Point Loma (16-2 overall) has now equaled the mark set by the 2011 team, which went 16-9 and reached the NAIA quarterfinals before beginning its transition to NCAA Division II.
 
"It's been a tremendous year for the guys," Head Coach Curt Wheeler said. "There have been challenges but it's been so cool to see how well we've responded to each one. Our mindset from the beginning has been that we can beat any team we step on the court with.
 
"They've shown that in every match and even in the two that didn't go our way, they were very close to going our way."
 
Before the match, the Sea Lions honored seniors Alejandro Castaneda, Tyler Davis, Fabian Penzkofer and David Strassburger for their contributions to the program.
 
"It was a really strong performance by the guys on Senior Day against a tough team," Wheeler said. "We had to come out and play well, which we did as a group. It was fun to see how much energy their teammates had and how appreciative they are of the seniors for all they've done this year, and for three of them in years previous as well."
 
PLNU swept the doubles matches to win the doubles point, with Nabeel Khan and Elias Weeks winning the first match to finish, 6-1, at No. 3.
 
Penzkofer then teamed up with Alexander Leischner at No. 1, with early and late breaks of serve keying their 6-3 victory.
 
A pair of seniors in Davis and Strassburger then teamed up to win 6-4 at No. 2, with Davis' lob to the baseline clinching the set and a Sea Lions sweep in doubles.
 
Then in singles, the first four matches to finish were all victories for the four graduating PLNU seniors.
 
Davis cruised to a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 2, before Penzkofer and Castaneda won by the same margin at No. 3 and 6 respectively. Strassburger then completed the senior sweep with his 6-1, 6-4 victory at No. 5, overcoming an 0-3 start to the second set.
 
Andrew Suver followed that up with a straightforward 6-2, 6-2 triumph at No. 4, before Leischner ensured Point Loma won all singles matches with his 7-6, 6-2 victory at No. 1.
 
Leischner broke serve late in the first set to force a tiebreak, which he won 7-2, before a powerful volley at the net capped off his win in set two.
 
Point Loma will have its first chance to set a new program record for wins in a single season at next week's PacWest Championships in Surprise, Arizona.
 
PLNU will find out its seed for the tournament on Monday, and regardless of seed, the Sea Lions will play in the quarterfinals on Thursday at 1 p.m. against an opponent to be announced.
 
"The guys have a lot of confidence right now," Wheeler said. "They're excited and looking forward to Arizona, with the mindset of making this year even better."