SURPRISE, Ariz. -- The pairing of Logan Liddell and Robert Henry earned a tough 9-7 victory over their opponents at No. 3 doubles, but the Sonoma State tennis team suffered a 5-1 loss to No. 21 BYU-Hawaii on opening day of the Pacific West Conference Championships Thursday, falling into a loser-out match against Hawaii-Hilo on Friday at 2:00 pm.

On day one of the Pacific West Conference men's tennis tournament top-seeded Hawai'i Pacific began the pursuit of its second consecutive PacWest tournament championship with a decisive 5-0 win over No. 8 seed Holy Names. The team it faced in last year's title match, however, suffered a surprising loss, with No. 2 seed Fresno Pacific falling to No. 7 Point Loma 5-1 in day one's lone upset, while No. 3 seed Azusa Pacific and No. 4 seed BYU-Hawaii advanced to the 2014 semifinals.

The No. 4 ranked Sea Warriors (17-0) took an early 3-0 lead on Hawai'i Hilo (1-16) following their doubles sweep, and dropped only 10 games in singles action to record the first victory of the afternoon. HPU got a quick win from 14th ranked Jaume Martinez at No. 2, and Clemens Graute clinched the Sea Warriors' spot in the round of four with a 6-0, 6-0 defeat of Daniel Tada at No. 6.  Petr Michnev, the No. 2 rated player in NCAA II, led 6-3, 2-0 when the match was sealed.

"It was a good start. Obviously we got on quick and got off quick. It was a good match for us and it gives us confidence going forward," said Hawai'i Pacific head coach Hendrik Bode.

Point Loma (7-15) knocked off last season's runner-up thanks to a strong start against No. 9 ranked Fresno Pacific (17-7). The Sea Lions won all three of their doubles matches 8-5, opening the day with a win from the 13th ranked duo of Brooks Baldinger and Michael Zablan at No. 1. FPU got its first win of the match when Leonardo Urquidi notched a victory at No. 3, but the shorthanded Sunbirds, playing without their No. 1 and No. 3 players, couldn't muster a comeback as Point Loma advanced with a 5-1 win.

No. 11 ranked Azusa Pacific held off a tough Holy Names (7-12) team, going ahead 3-0 headed into singles play after narrowly edging out the Hawks 9-7 at No. 1 singles. The Cougars then got wins Tomas Aranguiz on court five, and sealed a matchup with Point Loma in the semis with Joseph Remington's 6-2, 6-1 win at No. 6.

"This is such a tough tournament so we're thrilled to move on. It was a hard fought match. Holy Names really pushed us, but I liked what I saw from our guys. It bodes well for us moving forward," said Azusa Pacific head coach Mark Bohren.

No. 21 ranked BYU-Hawaii rounded out Thursday's winners with its 5-1 defeat of Sonoma State. After the Seasiders took an early 2-0 advantage the Seawolves got on the board with a 9-7 doubles win from Logan Liddell and Robert Henry at No. 3. A pair of singles wins put BYU-Hawaii in position to clinch a spot in the semifinals before 23rd ranked Martin Chojnacki upended Phillip Holbrook in a second set tie breaker, winning 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) at No. 2.

Friday's semifinals will put top-seed HPU against BYU-Hawaii, while No. 3 seed Azusa Pacific takes on No. 7 Point Loma. The consolation bracket pairs Fresno Pacific against Holy Names, with Sonoma State facing Hawai'i Hilo. Each of the four matches are slated to start at 2 p.m. (PST).

For complete tournament coverage, including scores, live results, and schedules, please visit http://www.apu.edu/athletics/stories/21782/.

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#21 BYU-Hawaii 5, #50 Sonoma State 1
Apr 17, 2014 at Surprise, AZ (Surprise Tennis & Racquet Club)

Singles competition
1. Yevhen Zahkarov (BYUH) vs. Matt Roberts (SSU) 6-6, 1-0, unfinished
2. #23 Martin Chojnacki (BYUH) def. Philip Holbrook (SSU) 6-4, 7-6 (7-3)
3. Wei-Feng Lee (BYUH) def. Daniel Holz (SSU) 6-2, 6-1
4. Ibrahim Karmadzha (BYUH) vs. Robert Henry (SSU) 6-4, 4-3, unfinished
5. Peng Dai (BYUH) def. Logan Liddell (SSU) 6-1, 6-0
6. Ian Galli (BYUH) vs. Vincent Paganetti (SSU) 3-6, 4-5, unfinished

Doubles competition
1. Yevhen Zahkarov/Martin Chojnacki (BYUH) def. Matt Roberts/Philip Holbrook (SSU) 8-3
2. Wei-Feng Lee/Peng Dai (BYUH) def. Jimmy Manning/Seth Hein (SSU) 8-5
3. Logan Liddell/Robert Henry (SSU) def. Ibrahim Karmadzha/Taylor DeHoyos (BYUH) 9-7

Match Notes
Sonoma State 10-12; National ranking #50; Regional ranking #6
BYU-Hawaii 12-5; National ranking #21; Regional ranking #5

Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (5,3,2)
Pacific West Conference Championship Tournament
BYU-Hawaii No. 4 Seed
Sonoma State No. 5 Seed
BYUH advances to the PacWest Semifinals
T-2:50 A-103