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SEATTLE, Wash. — The promise of revenge turned into just renewed heartache for the Portland State men's tennis team Saturday, as the Vikings lost 4-3 to Seattle at the Tennis Center at Sand Point, their second 4-3 loss to the Redhawks this season.
 
The Vikings (1-6) swept the matches at lines 1-3 in singles, but the Redhawks (5-5) took the matches at lines 4-6 after winning the doubles point to steal the win from the Vikings.
 
The Vikings also lost to the Redhawks, 4-3, on Jan. 27, after the Redhawks came back from losing the doubles point to win four matches in singles.
 
Saturday's match represented a chance for revenge, then, and the Vikings nearly pulled it off behind their strength at the top of the lineup.
 
Junior Nathan Boniel and freshman Tommy Edwards won their match together at line one in doubles, 6-3, and then each won their singles matches at lines one and two, respectively, in straight sets. Boniel beat Seattle's Trenton Nield 6-4, 6-3 at line one, while Edwards beat Seattle's John Stormans 6-3, 6-4 at line two.
 
Both Boniel and Edwards also swept their matches against Seattle in the Vikings' first match against the Redhawks, and rank tied for the team lead with four wins each in singles this season.
 
Boniel's win Saturday gives him 23 career singles wins, moving him into a tie for sixth all-time at Portland State. Boniel needs just five more singles wins to match the career record of 28 that Chris Rice (2009-11) and Alex VanDerschelden (2008-11) currently share. Additionally, Boniel's 23 wins have all come at line one, ranking him second all-time in wins at the position behind Rice's record total of 28.
 
Senior Ethan Lopez also won his 23rd career singles match Saturday, as he won a three-set match over Seattle's Matt Alderson at line three. Lopez ran out to a quick lead in the match with a 6-1 win in the first set, but then lost a close second set in a tiebreaker. Lopez returned to his dominant form in the third set, however, beating Alderson 6-2 in the frame to take their match, 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-2.
 
Lopez remains tied with Boniel in all-time singles wins, then, keeping him in the chase for the career singles wins record that remains a subtext to the Vikings' 2017 dual season. Lopez and Boniel are also chasing the career record for Big Sky singles wins this season, as Lopez and Boniel rank third and tied for sixth with 11 and nine wins, respectively.
 
Freshman Sam Larson nearly gave the Vikings what would have been a dual-winning fourth point against the Redhawks, but couldn't hold onto his early lead against Seattle's Alex Chan at line six and lost in three sets. Larson beat Chan, 6-4, in the first set, but then lost the second set by the same score, before falling in the final frame, 6-2.
 
The Vikings return to Big Sky play for their next match, as Eastern Washington comes to Club Green Meadows in Vancouver, Wash., at 12 p.m. next Friday.
 
Match Notes: The Vikings fall to 7-5 all-time against Seattle following Saturday's loss…The Redhawks have won four of their last six matches against the Vikings…Six of the Vikings' last seven matches against the Redhawks have been decided by 4-3 or 5-2 scores.

Seattle 4, Portland State 3
Feb 11, 2017 at Seattle, Wash. (Tennis Center at Sand Point) 

Singles competition

1. BONIEL, Nathan (PSU) def. NIELD, Trenton (SU) 6-4, 6-3

2. EDWARDS, Tommy (PSU) def. STORMANS, John (SU) 6-3, 6-4

3. LOPEZ, Ethan (PSU) def. ALDERSON, Matt (SU) 6-1, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2

4. SCHOETTLER, Michael (SU) def. ABDO, Yousef (PSU) 6-1, 6-4

5. KALMUS, Jeremiah (SU) def. RISENHOOVER, Russell (PSU) 7-5, 6-0

6. CHAN, Alex (SU) def. LARSON, Sam (PSU) 4-6, 6-4, 6-2

 

Doubles competition

1. BONIEL, Nathan/EDWARDS, Tommy (PSU) def. NIELD, Trenton/ALDERSON, Matt (SU) 6-3

2. STORMANS, John/SCHOETTLER, Michael (SU) def. ABDO, Yousef/RISENHOOVER, Russell (PSU) 6-2

3. KALMUS, Jeremiah/GHAZARYAN, Arshak (SU) def. LOPEZ, Ethan/LARSON, Sam (PSU) 6-3

 

Match Notes

Portland State 1-6

Seattle 5-5

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