LA MIRADA, Calif. --- It took every last thing that every single player had in them to get it done, but the Biola Women's Tennis team made a strong statement with a gutsy 5-4 victory over Chapman during opening day of the 2017 season.
 
The match came down to the wire as the final singles match left playing is the one that broke a 4-4 match tie.
 
This time around it happened to be the two women playing in the No. 4 spot who had to deal with the immense pressure of everyone at the courts watching their every strike.
 
Kelsey Post, a senior leader on the team, was the perfect player to take that burden on this afternoon. She battled back and forth with her opponent in a whirlwind of a first set and managed to get the 7-5 victory to gain advantage in the match. The confidence gained from that win gave her a huge mental and physical edge in the second set and she cruised to a 6-3 win to clinch the match for the Eagles.
 
"We knew the match with Chapman today was going to be very competitive. It was two even teams and a great battle out there," said Head Coach David Goodman.
 
The Post match clinched the win, but it was the Eagles' effort and energy in doubles competition earlier in the day that really handed them the victory. With both teams splitting singles with three wins a piece it was BU's 2-1 advantage in doubles that made all the difference.
 
Bailey McGeough and Katie Boesl paired up at No. 3 doubles and earned a convincing 8-2 win to set the tone early on. The next pairing to finish up was Madeline Heer and her partner, Post. They gutted out an 8-6 win at No. 1 to put BU ahead 2-0 early on.
 
The Biola advantage seemed like it was about to become 3-0 when the No. 2 pairing held a 7-5 lead, but a Chapman run allowed the to steal that match 9-7 and setup all the drama later in singles.
 
In addition to Post's win at No. 4, Lauren Lee (No. 3) and Naydene Valencia (No. 4) got their years' started with a win in singles competition. It was both women's first collegiate victory.
 
"It was an amazing match to start the season. The first match can set the tone for what your team will be like and the optimism they feel about the season," said Goodman. "I was really proud of the girls and how hard they competed today. They definitely earned this victory."
 
Biola improves to 1-0. Chapman falls to 0-1. The Eagles have a busy first week as they are back in action on Wednesday at CSU Los Angeles, Friday at Caltech and then back at home on Saturday for a Golden State Athletic Conference match against Hope International.