The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo (UHH) men's tennis team finished third in the PacWest Championships, with Alessio Demichelis clinching the team's 4-2 victory over Point Loma with a come-from-behind singles win, according to a news release from the university.
The Vulcans finished the season 9-9. The team needed to finish at least .500 in the season to have a chance of advancing to the regionals on May 3, the news release said.
"The Red and Black secured the all-important doubles point against the Sea Lions, but PLNU rallied back to take the first singles win on court 5," the news release said. "A big win by Luca Matheiowetz gave the Vulcans the bump and Martin Soukal extended UHH's lead with a two-set win on the first court."
Demichelis generated a first-set win with a 7-6 (7-5) tie break.
"He then came back from behind to surpass David Strassburger (PLNU) 7-5 to solidify the team win on Saturday morning at the Surprise Tennis & Racquet Club," the news release said. "Matheiowetz also won his singles match in straight sets over Point Loma's Nabeel Khan 6-3, 6-2."
But, the Vulcans did not fare as well on court 6. That left the score 3-2 with courts 2 and 3 in action, the news release said.
"The Vulcans needed just one win to bring home the victory, and thanks to Demichelis' clinch, the Vulcans did just that," finishing 4-2, the news release said.
The Vulcans now wait to see where they fall in terms of postseason play, as the NCAA DII Men's and Women's tennis committee will decide the teams who will advance on May 3.