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CEDAR CITY, Utah — The Portland State women's tennis team picked up a big road win at Southern Utah Friday, beating the Thunderbirds 4-3 amidst windy conditions outdoors at the Thunderbird Tennis Courts.
 
The win keeps the Vikings (9-7, 5-4 Big Sky) ahead of North Dakota for sixth in the Big Sky standings, putting them in position to claim the final spot in the Big Sky tournament if the season ended today. The Vikings need to stay ahead of UND in order to make the Big Sky tournament at the end of the season since UND holds the tiebreaker over the Vikings after winning the two teams' match against each other, 4-3, on March 14.
 
The Vikings had to pull out a tough win over the Thunderbirds (2-14, 0-10 Big Sky) in order to stay ahead of UND Friday, as the Thunderbirds pushed the Vikings to the brink. The Vikings and Thunderbirds split their six singles matches against each other, but the Vikings claimed the dual thanks to a pivotal doubles-point victory to start the match.
 
"This was our first match outdoors, and so it was good get out and see what we do in the elements," PSU head coach Jay Sterling said. "It's exactly what we needed to prepare us for our next couple of matches."
 
The Vikings' victory in doubles continued a recent hot streak for the Vikings in doubles, which had been a source of frustration for the Vikings earlier in the season. The Vikings had been just 5-9 in doubles two weekends ago, but Friday's doubles-point win gave the Vikings their second straight victory in doubles, as the team heats up towards the end of the season.
 
"We've proven we can win without the doubles point, but given a choice you'd always hope to have it in your pocket going into singles," Sterling said.
 
Sophomores Tracy Dong and Kelsey Frey sealed the doubles point for the Vikings with a 6-4 win over Southern Utah's Evgenia Marushko and Laura Martin at line two. Dong's and Frey's win came after senior Alexa McDonald and junior Ayaka Terakawa gave the Vikings a quick lead in doubles, as they beat Southern Utah's Alba Payeras and Emily Lemmon 6-2 at line three.
 
Dong then helped lead the Vikings in singles, as she quickly wrapped up a 6-0, 6-0 win over Payeras at line three.
 
"I just stayed focused for every point," Dong said about her double-bagel win. "I knew there were possible distractions with the wind and the elevation, but I just took care of myself."
 
Dong now has eight Big Sky wins in nine matches this season, giving the sophomore her second single-season school record in 2015. Dong's eight Big Sky wins break the previous record of seven, which Megan Govi set in 2013. Dong also broke the single-season school record for wins at lines three earlier in the year, and upped that record to 12 with her win Friday.

Dong is also on pace to break the school record for single-season win percentage, as her 14-2 record this season gives her a win percentage of .875, more than a 100 percentage points higher than the current record of .765, set by Yuki Sugiyama with a 13-4 record in 2011.
 
"Every time we drive to a match, I'm thinking about winning, dreaming about winning," Dong said. "I'm just feeling really good right now."
 
Sophomore Sabina-Elena Preda, meanwhile, followed Dong's win with a 6-1, 6-1 win of her own over Southern Utah's Teresa De Enrique at line four. Preda has now won three straight matches for the Vikings, as well as four of her last five matches overall.
 
"I was feeling really good, but then the wind started and I had to readjust," Preda said of her win. "I just stuck to my game plan, though, and got the win."
 
McDonald then wrapped up the dual win for the Vikings, as she beat Lemmon 6-3, 6-1 at line six. McDonald also sealed the Vikings' 4-3 win over Northern Colorado on March 7, giving the senior the dual-clinching win in two of the Vikings' three 4-3 wins in Big Sky play this season.
 
Five of the Vikings' nine Big Sky matches have now been decided by 4-3 scores, and the Vikings are 3-2 in those matches after Friday. Three of the Vikings' four other Big Sky matches were also decided by 5-2 scores, as nearly all the Vikings' matches in Big Sky play have been close.
 
Freshman Siena Peri nearly gave the Vikings' a fifth point in their match Friday, as she mounted a couple of comebacks within her match against Marushko at line two. Peri trailed 5-2 in the second set to Marushko after losing the first set, but came all the way back to win the set in a tiebreaker. Peri then fell down again, 8-2, in the ensuing match tiebreaker, but rallied once more to earn three match points against Marushko. It was Marushko's time to rally at that point, though, and the Thunderbird sophomore did so, winning the match tiebreaker 13-11 to give her the win overall.
 
The Vikings will now look to keep rolling, as they face a tough opponent in the Utah State Aggies Saturday. The Vikings will face the Aggies in Flagstaff, Ariz., at 1 p.m. (PT).
 
Portland State 4, Southern Utah 3
Apr 10, 2015 at Cedar City, Utah (Thunderbird Tennis Courts) 

Singles competition

1. ROGOVA, Veronika (SUU) def. VORSTER, Dane (PSU) 6-2, 6-3

2. MARUSHKO, Evgenia (SUU) def. PERI, Siena (PSU) 6-2, 6-7 (1-7), 1-0 (13-11)

3. DONG, Tracy (PSU) def. PAYERAS, Alba (SUU) 6-0, 6-0

4. PREDA, Sabina-Elena (PSU) def. DE ENRIQUE, Teresa (SUU) 6-1, 6-1

5. MARTIN, Laura (SUU) def. FREY, Kelsey (PSU) 6-2, 6-2

6. MCDONALD, Alexa (PSU) def. LEMMON, Emily (SUU) 6-3, 6-1

 

Doubles competition

1. ROGOVA, Veronika/DE ENRIQUE, Teresa (SUU) def. VORSTER, Dane/PERI, Siena (PSU) 6-3

2. DONG, Tracy/FREY, Kelsey (PSU) def. MARUSHKO, Evgenia/MARTIN, Laura (SUU) 6-4

3. MCDONALD, Alexa/TERAKAWA, Ayaka (PSU) def. PAYERAS, Alba/LEMMON, Emily (SUU) 6-2

 

Match Notes

Portland State 9-7 (5-4)

Southern Utah 2-14 (0-10)

Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (3,4,1,5,6,2)