Complete match notes (PDF)

PORTLAND, Ore. — Fresh off its first win over perennial conference power Sacramento State, the Portland State men's tennis team (6-11, 3-6 Big Sky) closes its regular season on the road at Southern Utah and Northern Arizona this weekend. The Vikings open the weekend Friday against the Thunderbirds at 11 a.m. (MT) in Cedar City, Utah, and then play Northern Arizona Sunday at 10 a.m. (PT) in Flagstaff, Ariz.
 
The Vikings' win over the Hornets last Saturday – the program's first in 15 chances against the 11-time Big Sky champions – keeps the team's hopes alive for its first-ever berth into the Big Sky tournament. The Vikings will need a considerable amount of help, but will first need to win both their matches this weekend. If they can do that, and Northern Arizona, Idaho State and Eastern Washington all lost out while Northern Colorado loses one more match, then the Vikings will make the tournament.
 
Regardless of whether things break the Vikings' way as far as the conference tournament, though, the Vikings also have a chance to play for history this weekend, as another win would tie the 2010 men's team's record of four Big Sky wins in a single season, while two more wins would break it.
 
SCOUTING SOUTHERN UTAH:
The Southern Utah Thunderbirds (0-12, 0-9 Big Sky) have had a tough season in 2015, losing all 12 of their matches so far by either 6-1 or 7-0 scores. The Thunderbirds' small roster has not helped the team's struggles, as they have only had six players play more than one match this season. Youth has dominated the top of the Thunderbirds' lineup, too, as freshmen Ben Spencer and Dario Rios have played the majority of the season at lines one and two, respectively, for the Thunderbirds. The Thunderbirds have struggled throughout their singles lineup this season, however, as they are 0-12 at lines one, two, four and six this season, and just 2-10 and 1-11 at lines three and five, respectively. Things have not been any better in doubles, either, as the Thunderbirds are 0-12 at lines one and two, and just 1-11 at line three.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES VERSUS SOUTHERN UTAH:
The Vikings have won each of their first two series against the Thunderbirds, 7-0. The Vikings beat the Thunderbirds 7-0 on the road in 2013, and followed it up with another 7-0 win at home last season.
 
SCOUTING NORTHERN ARIZONA:
The Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (7-12, 5-4 Big Sky) started the Big Sky schedule 5-0, but have lost their last four conference matches going into the weekend. All four of the Lumberjacks' recent losses have come against teams in the top five of the conference standings, while a number of them have been close. The Lumberjacks have lost their last two matches, 4-3, to Sacramento State and Weber State, and lost to Montana State, 5-2. Individually, the Lumberjacks return three of the four players who earned All-Big Sky honorable-mention honors last season, including senior Jordan Gobatie, who has led the Lumberjacks at line one in singles for most of the season. Gobatie has a 7-6 record at line one this season, and a 7-2 overall record in Big Sky play. Besides him, fellow senior Kester Black, another of the team's All-Big Sky honorable mentions last season, has a 7-1 conference record this season while playing predominately at line four. Sophomore Alexandre Locci, meanwhile, represents the Lumberjacks' third All-Big Sky honorable mention to return from last season, and has a 5-4 record in Big Sky play so far this year. Outside of those three, freshman Felix Schumann has a 7-2 record in Big Sky play this season while playing predominately at line five. The Lumberjacks have had an up-and-down year in doubles, meanwhile, as they're 8-11 doubles points this season, but have won the doubles point in a number of big matches, including the team's 5-2, upset win over then-No. 70 Nevada. Overall, the Lumberjacks have gone 10-11 in doubles matches against Big Sky opponents, and are 5-4 in doubles points in conference matches. Schumann and freshman Eden Peleg lead the Lumberjacks with a 3-1 record in Big Sky matches this season, while Gobatie and Locci have a 3-4 record while playing at lines one and two.   
 
ALL-TIME SERIES VERSUS NORTHERN ARIZONA:
The Vikings trail the Lumberjacks, 1-10, in the all-time series between the two teams. The Vikings won their first-ever match against the Lumberjacks in 2013, when they won 4-3 on the road.
 
VIKINGS PULL OFF HISTORIC WIN OVER SACRAMENTO STATE:
For the second time this season, the Vikings record an historic win, as they beat Sacramento State for the first time as a program last Saturday. The Vikings beat the 11-time Big Sky-champion Hornets, 4-3, giving them their first win over the perennial conference power in 15 chances. The Vikings pulled off the upset thanks to a decisive doubles point and wins from senior Stuart Tierney, sophomore Ethan Lopez and junior Ian Risenhoover in singles. Risenhoover clinched the dual for the Vikings with a dramatic win in a third set tiebreaker at line five. The win follows the Vikings' similarly historic first win over Montana earlier in the season, as the Vikings had also been winless against the defending Big Sky-champion Grizzlies before beating them 5-2 on Feb. 21.
 
LOOKING AHEAD:
If things go the Vikings' way this weekend, then they'll play in the Big Sky Championships in Gold River, Calif., April 24-26. The six-team conference tournament will start with quarterfinal matches between the bottom four seeds on April 24, with the two winners advancing to the semifinals the next day. The winner of the two semifinals will then meet in the championship match on April 26, which will determine the conference's auto bid to the NCAA tournament.
 
SECOND IS THE BEST:
Line two has been the magic spot for the Vikings this season in singles, as the Vikings are 12-5 at the position, as opposed to 28-57 combined everywhere else. Senior Stuart Tierney and sophomore Ethan Lopez have combined to give the Vikings a strong record at line two, as Tierney has gone 5-1 at the position, while Lopez has gone 7-2. Lopez's seven wins at line two rank tied for the second-best single-season total at the position in program history, while Tierney's five wins rank tied for sixth.
 
CLOSE LOSSES:
The Vikings' win over Sacramento State snapped a string of tough results in close matches for the Vikings this season, as they had been 0-4 in 4-3 matches before the win over the Hornets. Three of the Vikings' four 4-3 losses came in Big Sky play, too, as those close matches have greatly shaped the Vikings' season. The Vikings would be 6-3 if all the 4-3 matches had gone their way, which would put them in position to qualify for the Big Sky tournament if the season ended today.
 
QUALITY WINS FOR TIERNEY:
Senior Stuart Tierney has pulled off a number of quality wins for the Vikings this season, as his 4-6, 6-0, 6-3 win over Sacramento State's Roy Brandys was his fourth win over a former All-Big Sky first- or second-team selection this season. Besides Brandys, Tierney has also beaten three-time All-Big Sky first-team selection Niklas Brandes of Montana State, as well as All-Big Sky second-team selections Tomasz Soltyka of Montana, and Krzysztof Stempien of Idaho State.
 
RECORD SETTERS:
Sophomore Ethan Lopez and senior Stuart Tierney have put together two of the best seasons in program history. Lopez's six Big Sky wins rank tied for the single-season school record, while his 10 wins overall during the dual season rank as the third-best single-season total. Tierney doesn't rank far behind Lopez either, as Tierney has nine wins overall this season, ranking him tied for the fourth-best single-season win total, while his five Big Sky wins rank tied for the third-best single-season total. Additionally, Tierney's overall win percentage of .600 (9-6) this season would rank as the third-best single-season win percentage if the season ended today, while Lopez's win percentage of .588 (10-7) would rank fourth. Lopez and junior Brent Wheeler, meanwhile, each rank two wins behind the record of 10 wins at line three in doubles, as well as two wins behind the single-season record for Big Sky doubles wins, which Abhinav Mishra set at nine in 2013. Junior Ian Risenhoover also now has 27 wins in his Portland State doubles career, ranking him tied for third all-time and five wins behind all-time leader Alex VanDerschelden, who had 32 career wins from 2008-11.
 
VIKINGS SWEEP SINGLES, DOUBLES TITLES AT CORVALLIS INDOOR TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS:
The Vikings had one of the most dominant weekends in program history at the Corvallis Indoor Tennis Championships, Jan. 16-18, as they swept the singles and doubles titles at the tournament. The Vikings' Matt Pronesti won the singles title at the tournament, while Stuart Tierney and Ian Risenhoover won the doubles title. The Vikings played well throughout the draw, though, as they claimed three of the four semifinals spots in both the singles and doubles draws, and claimed five of the eight quarterfinal spots in the singles draw. Additionally, the Vikings had two players reach the final, as junior Brent Wheeler made the championship match opposite Pronesti.
 
INFLUX OF TRANSFERS:
The Vikings entered the 2015 dual season with four newcomers, all of whom came to the Vikings as transfers during the summer. Senior Stuart Tierney and sophomore Nacor Ibanez each came to the Vikings from Lipscomb University, while junior Matt Pronesti and sophomore Ethan Lopez joined the Vikings from Merrimack College and Fresno State, respectively. For Tierney and Pronesti, their transfer to Portland State marks a return to the state of Oregon for each of them, as Tierney hails from Hillsboro, Ore., while Pronesti grew up in Medford, Ore., and played junior doubles tournaments with his new Portland State teammate Wil Cochrane.
 
A TEAM FULL OF OREGONIANS:
With senior Stuart Tierney and junior Matt Pronesti joining the Vikings as transfers over the summer, the Vikings now have five native Oregonians on their roster for the 2015 dual season. Tierney grew up in Hillsboro before joining the Vikings, while Pronesti grew up in Medford, near where junior Wil Cochrane grew up in Ashland. Besides them, junior Brent Wheeler came to the Vikings out of Salem, Ore., while junior Ian Risenhoover grew up in Tualatin, Ore., and went to high school in West Linn.
 
FALL SEASON RECAP:
The Vikings' four newcomers helped the team post a standout fall season in 2014, as the Vikings posted a 25-30 combined singles record and 13-12 combined doubles record over three tournaments in the fall. The highlight of the fall came in the team's final tournament of the season, as juniors Wil Cochrane and Matt Pronesti won the second flight of the main doubles draw at the PNW Intercollegiates in November, the first main draw doubles title by a Viking team since 2010. Additionally, five players finished with .500 records in singles or better during the fall, while four players had winning records.