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VANCOUVER, Wash. — Down 3-0 in the third set with the dual tied 3-3, senior Ian Risenhoover stormed back to win six straight games and deliver a 4-3 win for the Portland State men's tennis team over Idaho State Monday afternoon at Club Green Meadows.
 
The win gave the Vikings (9-3, 4-2 Big Sky) their program record-tying ninth win overall this season, matching the previous best set by the 2009 and 2013 Vikings with nine regular-season matches still left on the team's 2016 schedule. Additionally, the Vikings tied a program record with their fourth Big Sky win of the season Monday, and will have five more Big Sky matches in which to break it.
 
The Bengals (3-7, 1-2 Big Sky) very nearly stole Monday's match from the Vikings, however, as they won a pair of three-set matches in singles to tie the dual at 3-3 after the Vikings had taken a 3-1 lead. The Bengals' second three-set win came just as the match at line six entered the third set, turning the attention of the entire tennis center to Risenhoover and his opponent, Idaho State's Haseeb Khan.
 
Khan got a good start to the third set, breaking Risenhoover in the second game and then holding his next service game for a 3-0 lead. Risenhoover got a big hold in his next service game, however, and then followed it up with a huge break to get back on serve in the set. Risenhoover still had to serve to tie at 3-3, but once he did that, he had all the momentum and cruised to the 5-7, 6-3, 6-3 win from there.
 
"When the momentum's going the opposite direction, you just have to think about the next points to come and try to change up the little things, try to be a little bit more consistent, try to get some first serves in," Risenhoover said about his mindset when he was down 3-0. "You know it's coming down to you at 3-all, which is a lot of fun, but it's also really nerve-wracking. But you've got your teammates there rooting you on and you can't ask for anything better than that.
 
"Once it gets louder and you see the last guy shaking hands, you know it's all on you. I've been in this position before [he closed out a 4-3 win over Sacramento State on April 11 last season], and you just got to think, 'it's just a tennis match, win or lose you just go out there and you lose on your racket.' And that's all I was thinking about, but I just tried to adjust, make the points shorter, just get to the net, and that's what happened. I can't be happier than this."
 
Risenhoover's win helped the Vikings avoid a two-match losing streak for the first time this season, as the Vikings were coming off a close, 4-3 match to conference-leading Weber State on Saturday. The Vikings had two three-set matches in that match that they weren't able to pull out to get the win, and Monday's match started to look like it was going that route, too, before Risenhoover turned things around in the third set at line six.
 
"This is a resilient group, this is a tough group, and they'll fight and battle. It was a new day today and we won this one. I think it just goes to our leadership," Krauel said of his team's ability to bounce back after losses this season.
 
Risenhoover's win gave him the career wins record at line six at Portland State, and tied him with Chris Rice (2009-11) for the career lead in Big Sky singles wins with 14.
 
Risenhoover also won his eighth match of the season in doubles with partner Scott Goldner, tying the season record for wins at No. doubles that Risenhoover set with Antoine Bechmann as a freshman in 2013. Risenhoover and Goldner got their eighth win after overcoming an early break to clinch the doubles point for the Vikings with a 6-4 win over the Bengals' Sebastian Edin and Josh Goodwin at line two. Risenhoover and Goldner have now won four matches together, and have a 5-1 record together in Big Sky matches.
 
Junior Ethan Lopez and senior Brent Wheeler also won their match at line one in doubles, beating the Bengals' William Edin and Bjorn Scheepbouwer 6-3. That win gave the pair their seventh win together this season, and 16th overall, ranking them five wins from tying Alec Marx and Abhinav Mishra for the all-time record at Portland State.
 
In singles, sophomore Nathan Boniel continued his hot streak at line one, beating Idaho State's Sebastian Edin 6-1, 6-2 for his fifth straight win and third straight win in straight sets. Boniel has only dropped eight combined games in his last three matches, all of which have come over Big Sky opponents.
 
Boniel also upped his season record to an astounding 11-1 this season, keeping his hopes of setting the single-season singles win record very much alive. Boniel ranks only four wins behind Rice's record of 15 wins in 2009, and Boniel has nine regular-season matches remaining to get those four wins. Additionally, Boniel's current win percentage of .917 would crush the record Rice set at .652 (15-8) in 2009, if the season ended today.
 
"It really helps for us to have a guy at the top of our lineup where you can pretty much put a W right there, and he's beating guys badly right now," Krauel said of his No. 1 player.
 
Goldner was the other Viking to win in singles, as he snapped a two-match losing streak with a 6-3, 6-3 win over the Bengals' Bjorn Scheepbouwer at line three. Goldner played with the lead for all of the first set of the match against Scheepbouwer, but then had to come back from an early 2-0 deficit at the start of the second set. Goldner bounced right back, however, winning five straight games before breaking Scheepbouwer a final time to win the second set, 6-3.
 
"Scott's kind of been in that pattern of winning the first set easy and then losing the second and third, but he fought back and really stepped up for us today," Krauel said.
 
The Vikings get their first crack at a program-record 10th win of the season tomorrow, as they host NCAA Division III Swarthmore College on the top floor of the Stott Center at 4 p.m. (PT).
 
Match Notes: The Vikings improve to 4-9 all-time against Idaho State with Monday's win…The Vikings also snapped a four-match losing streak to the Bengals after beating them Monday…The Vikings have won the doubles point in five straight matches now, and nine of their 12 matches overall this season.
 
Portland State 4, Idaho State 3
Mar 07, 2016 at Vancouver, Wash. (Club Green Meadows) 

Singles competition

1. BONIEL, Nathan (PSU) def. Sebastian Edin (ISU) 6-1, 6-2

2. William Edin (ISU) def. LOPEZ, Ethan (PSU) 7-6, 3-6, 6-2

3. GOLDNER, Scott (PSU) def. Bjorn Scheepbouwer (ISU) 6-3, 6-3

4. Francis Filipovich (ISU) def. WHEELER, Brent (PSU) 4-6, 6-4, 6-0

5. Josh Goodwin (ISU) def. COCHRANE, Wil (PSU) 6-3, 6-2

6. RISENHOOVER, Ian (PSU) def. Haseeb Khan (ISU) 5-7, 6-3, 6-3

Doubles competition

1. LOPEZ, Ethan/WHEELER, Brent (PSU) def. William Edin/Bjorn Scheepbouwer (ISU) 6-3

2. GOLDNER, Scott/RISENHOOVER, Ian (PSU) def. Sebastian Edin/Josh Goodwin (ISU) 6-4

3. BONIEL, Nathan/COCHRANE, Wil (PSU) vs. Francis Filipovich/Haseeb Khan (ISU) 6-5, unfinished

Match Notes

Idaho State 3-7, 1-2 BSC

Portland State 9-3, 4-2 BSC

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