NCAA Division II Regionals Selections Release -- April 28, 2015

MATCH #19
No. 11 Hawaii Pacific (20-6) at No. 9 Academy of Art University (13-5)
Saturday, May 2, 2015 – 3 p.m. PDT
San Francisco – San Francisco Tennis Club
LIVE STATS: http://www.artuathletics.com/NCAARegional
 
SAN FRANCISCO — The goal wasn't just to get back, it was to do better. That's exactly what the No. 9 Academy of Art University women's tennis team has done this season, earning the right to host its first-ever NCAA Division II West Regional on Saturday for a chance to go to the NCAA Championship Tournament, as announced Tuesday by the NCAA.
 
For the third time this season, the Urban Knights (13-5) will square off against No. 11 Hawaii Pacific (20-6). Academy of Art earned the No. 2 seed in the region while HPU was named the No. 3

HISTORY IN THE MAKING! @ARTU_Tennis will host it's first #NCAAD2 Regional in school history this Saturday, May 2 at 3pm against Hawaii Pacific! PacWestWT ArtSchool A video posted by Be Artist. Be Athlete. (@artu_knights) on Apr 28, 2015 at 5:25pm PDT

seed. No. 3-ranked BYU-Hawaii earned the West Region's top seed, earning an automatic berth to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Division II National Championship.
 
The winner of Saturday's Academy of Art-Hawaii Pacific match will join BYU-Hawaii in moving on to the NCAA Division II National Championship site. The NCAA Championship will be held May 13-16 at the Surprise Tennis & Racquet Complex in Surprise, Ariz., the same site as this year's PacWest Championship Tournament back on April 16-18.
 
ABOUT HAWAII PACIFIC
The Sharks (20-6) earned a third-place finish at the PacWest Championship, rebounding from their semifinals loss to the Urban Knights and defeating then-No. 22 Cal State LA 5-1. HPU is 11-4 this season against top-25 ranked teams. It is also 2-2 against NCAA Division I teams. The Sharks are 4-1 in true road matches this season and 10-2 at neutral sites.
 
Hawaii Pacific has three players ranked among the West Region's top-20 in singles and one doubles team ranked in the top-10. Kristyna Hancarova is ranked No. 4 in singles. Nicole Hoynaski is No. 11 and Vivian Hansen is No. 17. The doubles team of Hancarova and Hoynaski is ranked No. 2 in the region.
 
DÉJÀ VU ALL OVER AGAIN
Saturday's matchup was the same at last year's NCAA Division II West Regional, but with Hawaii Pacific hosting as the No. 2 seed and Academy of Art traveling to Honolulu as the No. 3 seed. The Sharks would sweep that match 5-0 and move on to the national championship tournament.
 
FAMILIAR FOES
HPU and ART U have already met twice this season, splitting their first two matchups. The Knights took the most recent showdown on April 17, 5-3 in the semifinals of the Pacific West Conference Championship Tournament. It was the Urban Knights' first win over the Sharks and helped them earn the program's best finish at the PacWest Championship as runners-up. Hawaii Pacific defeated the Urban Knights 5-4 in Hawaii on March 21.