Complete match notes (PDF)

PORTLAND, Ore. — The Portland State women's tennis team (8-7, 4-4 Big Sky) takes its playoff chase on the road this weekend for a pivotal road trip at Southern Utah and Northern Arizona. The Vikings play at Southern Utah at 9 a.m. (MT) Friday, and then play Northern Arizona at 10 a.m. (PT) Sunday. The Vikings will also squeeze in a neutral-site match against Utah State in Flagstaff, Ariz., at 1 p.m. (PT) Saturday.
 
The Vikings' matches against Southern Utah and Northern Arizona will go a long ways towards deciding the team's fate for the six-team Big Sky tournament at the end of the season, as the conference schedule enters its final two weeks of the regular season.
 
The Vikings stand sixth in the Big Sky currently, giving them a slight edge on North Dakota and Montana State, the two teams right behind them in the standings. Those three teams will likely battle it out for the final spot in the tournament field, as the five teams above them have two losses or less in conference play so far. Sacramento State and Idaho have already wrapped up spots in the tournament field at 10-0 and 7-1 in the Big Sky, respectively, while Montana has all but wrapped up its spot at 5-1 in conference play. Northern Arizona and Weber State then stand behind those three at 5-2 and 4-2, respectively, putting them ahead of Portland State, North Dakota and Montana State but not out of the woods.
 
Hindering the Vikings as they make their playoff chase, however, has been the team's head-to-head results against Weber State and North Dakota. The Vikings lost a pair of 4-3 decisions to both teams, meaning they will have to finish ahead of at least one of those teams to make the field. North Dakota finishes its regular-seasons schedule against Idaho State and Weber State this weekend, giving the Vikings the chance of clinching a spot in the tournament field if things go their way. UND takes a 4-5 mark in Big Sky play going into the weekend, and could open the door for the Vikings with anything less than two wins this weekend.
 
The Vikings face a challenging schedule of their own this weekend, though, as they have never won on the road against either Southern Utah or Northern Arizona.
 
SCOUTING SOUTHERN UTAH:
The Southern Utah Thunderbirds (2-12, 0-8 Big Sky) have had a tough season so far in 2015, but have had some improved results of late. The Thunderbirds beat Division II Dixie State 6-1 on April 2, and have played close matches in their last three losses to Division I opponents. The Thunderbirds lost 5-2 and 4-3 to Big Sky rivals Northern Colorado and Weber State, respectively, and lost 5-2 to UNLV Tuesday. Individually, the Thunderbirds have a youthful roster with five of their six players underclassmen, including four freshmen. Junior Veronika Rogova and sophomore Evgenia Marushko have traded off playing at line one and two this season, while freshman Teresa De Enrique Schmidt has played predominately at line three. Freshmen Alba Payeras and Laura Martin Lozano, meanwhile, have traded off time at lines four and five, while fellow freshman Emily Lemmon has played the whole season at line six. In doubles, the Thunderbirds had struggled at lines two and three, but have gotten good production at line one. Rogova and De Enrique Schmidt had won three of their five matches at line one, while the team has a 6-7 record at the position overall. The Thunderbirds only have 2-11 and 1-12 records at lines two and three in doubles, however.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES VERSUS SOUTHERN UTAH:
The Vikings and Thunderbirds have split their first two matches in the all-time series between the two teams. The Thunderbirds won the first match between them and the Vikings with a 5-2 victory in Utah in 2013, while the Vikings returned the favor with a 5-2 win at Club Green Meadows in 2014.
 
SCOUTING UTAH STATE:
The Utah State Aggies (11-9) have weathered a difficult schedule extremely well so far this season, as they have gone 1-2 against ranked teams in 2015. The Aggies beat then-No. 55 BYU, 4-3, on Jan. 28, and then suffered close losses to then-No. 67 Oregon, 5-2, on March 13, and then-No. 49 New Mexico, 4-3, on April 2. The Aggies are also 3-0 so far this season against Big Sky teams, having already beaten Weber State, Idaho State and Idaho earlier this season. The Aggies will also play Northern Arizona Saturday morning, before taking on the Vikings in the afternoon. Individually, the Aggies have one of the best players the Vikings have faced this season in senior McKenzie Davis, who ranks as the top singles player in the ITA Mountain region. Davis has led the Aggies at line one this season, and has a 14-3 record in the position, including a 3-1 record against fellow regionally ranked opponents. Sophomore Nini Guensler, meanwhile, has an 11-6 record at line two for the Aggies, including a 2-0 record against regionally ranked opponents. The Aggies have changed things up at the bottom four singles positions, as four of more players have played at all four. The team still has good records at lines five and six, however, as they are 11-9 and 11-8 combined at each position, respectively. The Aggies have also changed things up a lot in doubles, but have generally been a strong doubles team. The Aggies have won the doubles point in 13 of their 20 matches this season, including two of their three matches against ranked opponents. The Aggies have been especially strong at line two in doubles, as they are 15-4 combined at the position. Davis and freshman Maggie O'Meara have been the Aggies' top team at line two, as they have a 10-2 record together at the position. The Aggies have winning records at the other two doubles positions, however, as they are 11-9 combined at line one, and 11-7 combined at line three.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES VERSUS UTAH STATE:
The Vikings trail the Aggies, 2-4, in the all-time series between the two teams. The Vikings beat the Aggies 5-2 in back-to-back seasons in 2008 and 2009, but have the four other matches in the series. The Vikings and Aggies last played each other in 2011, when the Aggies beat the Vikings 6-1 on their home court.
 
SCOUTING NORTHERN ARIZONA:
The Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (8-9, 5-2 Big Sky) will play the Vikings at the end of a busy week for the team, as it will be their fourth match in seven days. The Lumberjacks have had some recent trouble, however, as they've lost three straight going into the weekend. The Lumberjacks had won six of their last seven before then, though, and won their first five Big Sky matches before losing their last two to Big Sky leaders Idaho and Sacramento State. The Lumberjacks return a lot of the talent that led them to a second-place finish in the Big Sky at 8-2 last season. Senior Johanna Vang returns after earning All-Big Sky first-team honors last season, while sophomore Hailey Rochin returns after being named an All-Big Sky honorable mention. Vang and Rochin have played all season at lines one and two, respectively, and have 6-9 and 7-9 records so far. Junior Emelia Box also has an 8-8 record at line three, while sophomore Marta Lewandowska has a 9-7 record at line four, as well as a 5-2 record against Big Sky opponents. Junior Jordan Denesik has the best record in Big Sky matches, though, as she's gone 6-1 against conference opponents so far while splitting time between lines five and six. Besides Denesik, sophomore transfer Sara Brown has also played at line six, and has a 4-2 record in Big Sky matches at the position. Meanwhile, the Lumberjacks' success overall in duals has generally followed their success in doubles. The Lumberjacks are 7-1 when they win the doubles point, and 1-8 when they lose it. The Lumerjacks have generally been much better in Big Sky matches in doubles, as they are 10-6 combined in doubles matches against Big Sky opponents this season. Lewandowska and Vang have a 6-4 record at line one for the Lumberjacks, while Box and Rochin have a 5-3 record at line two.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES VERSUS NORTHERN ARIZONA:
The Vikings beat the Lumberjacks for the first time in program history last season, when they won 6-1 at home. The Vikings had never won more than one point off the Lumberjacks in any of their previous 14 meetings against them before last season, but won five of the six singles matches on top of two of the three doubles matches.
 
VIKINGS SWEEP EASTERN WASHINGTON TO LAUNCH PLAYOFF CHASE:
The Vikings swept Eastern Washington last Saturday, beating the Eagles in all singles and doubles matches to launch their chase towards the Big Sky tournament. The win catapulted the Vikings up to fifth in the Big Sky at the time, putting them ahead of Weber State and North Dakota. The Eagles challenged the Vikings despite the 7-0 score, however, as four of the five contested singles matches all went to three sets or match tiebreakers. The Eagles had to forfeit at line three in doubles and line six in singles, but took the Vikings past two sets at line one, two, three and five. The Vikings won all four matches, though, with some players ending recent cold spells in the process. Sophomore Kelsey Frey was one of the players to end a losing streak, as she won her match at line five in three sets, giving the sophomore her first win of the dual season over a Division I opponent, and snapping a six-match losing streak overall.
 
LOOKING AHEAD:
The Vikings conclude their 2015 regular season at home with a match against Idaho April 18 at 1 p.m. (PT) at Club Green Meadows in Vancouver, Wash.
 
CLOSE MATCHES:
Four of the Vikings' eight Big Sky matches have been decided by 4-3 scores this season. The Vikings beat Idaho State and Northern Colorado 4-3 on Feb. 28 and March 7, respectively, but lost by the same score to Weber State on March 1 and North Dakota on March 14. Those four matches represent half of the Vikings' eight Big Sky matches this season, while the Vikings also beat Seattle and Lewis-Clark State, 4-3, during their non-conference schedule. The Vikings have also played four 5-2 matches this season, meaning 10 of the Vikings' 15 matches this season have been decided by 4-3 or 5-2 scores, with the Vikings 5-5 in those matches.
 
A SEASON FOR THE AGES:
Sophomore Tracy Dong has put together one of the best individual seasons in program history this year, as she has been tearing through the records books all year. Dong has already well surpassed the single-season record for wins at line three, as her 11 wins at the position are already three more than the old record of eight, set by Dong's teammate, Kelsey Frey, in 2013. Dong also tied the single-season record for Big Sky wins in the team's last match, as her seven wins in conference this season tie Megan Govi's total of seven from 2013. Additionally, Dong ranks four wins off Govi's overall record of 17 wins in 2013 with four matches remaining in the regular season. Dong would also break the record for single-season win percentage if the season ended today, as her 13-2 record in duals gives her a win percentage of .867, well ahead of the current single-season record of .765, set by Yuki Sugiyama with a 13-4 record in 2011.
 
FANTASTIC FRESHMAN:
Freshman Siena Peri has also been putting together one of the best seasons by a freshman this season, as she's gone 8-5 at line two. Peri's eight wins rank as the second-best single-season total at the position, while she'll tie the record of nine, set by Denise Cockrell in 2003, with her next win. Peri's win percentage of .615 also ranks second to Cockrell's record of .643 from 2003. Peri has been playing especially well of late, too, as she's won six of her last seven matches, including her last five Big Sky matches. Peri now has six Big Sky wins total this season, putting her just behind her teammates Megan Govi and Tracy Dong, who share the record at seven.
 
MEGAN GOVI BECOMES ALL-TIME LEADER IN SINGLES AND DOUBLES WINS:
Senior Megan Govi became the all-time leader in doubles wins in the Vikings' match against Weber State on March 1, and now has 32 doubles wins in her Portland State career, two more than Anya Dalkin, who set the record with 30 wins from 2008-11. The wins lead in doubles gives Govi the career lead in both singles and doubles wins at Portland State, as Govi also set the singles record last season. Govi has 42 singles wins in her Portland State career going into the weekend, 14 more than any other player in program history.
 
HISTORY MAKERS:
Besides Megan Govi, several other Vikings had already made history this season, including senior Alexa McDonald, who moved into sole possession of second place in career singles wins at Portland State with her dual-clinching win over Northern Colorado on March 7. McDonald now has 28 wins in her career, one win ahead of Leinani McAneney (1996-98) and Marti Pellicano (2010-13) at 27. Sophomore Kelsey Frey has also moved up the career ranks this season, as she ranks 11th all-time with 15 career singles wins, and moved into a tie for sixth all-time in career doubles wins with her win with Govi against Colorado College on March 6. Frey now has 19 career doubles wins, and will move into a tie for fourth all-time with one more win.
 
CHALLENGING SCHEDULE:
The Vikings set up a challenging schedule for themselves in 2015, as the team searches for a return trip to the Big Sky tournament. In order to do that, the Vikings will have to face seven things they have never done before as a program. Coming into the season, the Vikings had never beaten Montana, Montana State or Sacramento State during the regular season, and had never beaten Northern Colorado, Northern Arizona, Weber State or Southern Utah on the road. So far, the Vikings have gone 2-3 in facing those challenges this season, as they beat Montana State at home and Northern Colorado on the road, but lost to Montana and Sacramento State at home, as well as Weber State on the road. The Vikings will face their final two challenges – Northern Arizona and Southern Utah on the road – this weekend.
 
UP AND DOWN SEASON IN DOUBLES:
The Vikings have been up and down all season in doubles, and enter the weekend 6-9 in doubles points this season. The Vikings started the season with two straight doubles-point losses, but then won the doubles point in their next two matches. The Vikings followed that with three straight doubles-point losses, before bouncing back with wins in three of their next four matches. The Vikings followed that with three straight doubles-point losses, but then snapped that streak with their doubles-point victory over Eastern Washington last Saturday. The nine doubles-point losses are already four more than the Vikings' total losses in 2014, when the Vikings went 10-5 in doubles. The team's inconsistency in doubles has not been a huge drain on the Vikings so far, though, as the Vikings have come back to win the dual three times already this season after losing the doubles point.
 
DEPTH OF RETURNERS:
The Vikings return five of their six singles players from their historic 2014 season, including All-Big Sky first-team selection Dané Vorster, who played at No. 1 singles and doubles for the Vikings last season. Senior Megan Govi also returns for the Vikings after earning All-Big Sky honorable mention honors last season, a season in which she became the all-time singles wins leader at Portland State. Senior Alexa McDonald, the all-time wins leader at No. 5 and 6 singles for the Vikings, also returns this season, as well as sophomore Sabina-Elena Preda and junior Ayaka Terakawa. Additionally, the Vikings get back sophomore Kelsey Frey, who had to sit out the entire 2014 season due to an injury but had a highly successful freshman season in 2013.
 
NEWCOMERS:
In addition to their deep class of returners, the Vikings also added three talented newcomers in sophomore transfer Tracy Dong and freshmen Siena Peri and Alana Chaplin. Peri, a four-star recruit coming out of high school, has already asserted herself at or near the top of the Vikings' singles lineup, having played two matches already this season at No. 1 singles, and five more at line two. Dong, meanwhile, leads the Vikings with a 6-1 dual-season record so far, and has won five straight matches for the Vikings. Dong came to the Vikings after playing her freshman season at the Univeristy of Missouri, where she went 9-14 in singles against a challenging schedule within the SEC. Chaplin, finally, adds a lot of experience in Division I athletics even as a freshman, as she's the daughter of Oregon State head and associate head gymnastics coaches Tanya and Michael Chaplin.
 
FALL SEASON RECAP:
The Vikings played in four tournaments during their 2014 fall season, and went 26-30 combined as a team in singles, and 11-19 combined in doubles while playing 12 different doubles pairings. Sophomore Sabina-Elena Preda had the best singles record for the Vikings in the fall, as she went 4-1 over the last two tournaments of the season. Senior Megan Govi also went 4-3 for the Vikings in singles, while newcomers Tracy Dong and Siena Peri went 5-5 and 4-4, respectively. Peri also won the back draw of the Beach Tennis Fall Invitational, and posted a 4-2 record with junior Dané Vorster in doubles.
 
2014 SEASON RECAP:
The Vikings posted their most successful season to date in 2014, as they qualified for the Big Sky tournament for the first time in program history, finishing fourth in the conference during the regular-season with a program-best 6-3 record in Big Sky play. Then-sophomore Dané Vorster led the Vikings with a 5-3 record in Big Sky play at No. 1 singles, and recorded a 6-2 record at No. 2 doubles with then-junior Megan Govi. Vorster was named to the All-Big Sky first team for her efforts after the season, while Govi was named an All-Big Sky honorable mention. Additionally, Govi made history herself in 2014, as she became the all-time singles wins leader at Portland State during the season.