RESULTS - PDF | HTML

EUGENE, Ore. — The Portland State men's tennis team flashed some promising signs in its 2018 dual season opener against the high-powered Oregon Ducks Friday, but still lost 7-0 to the Ducks at the Student Tennis Center.
 
Oregon (2-0) made the second round of the NCAA tournament last season, and finished the year ranked 24th in the nation as a team. Additionally, the Ducks handled preseason-Big Sky favorite Idaho earlier in the day Friday, beating the Vandals 7-0.
 
The Vikings (0-1) had a similarly tough time with the Ducks, but equated themselves in a couple of key matches.
 
Nobody showed they belonged on the same court with the Ducks more than senior Nathan Boniel, who matched Simon Stevens – a 2015 Pac-12 honorable mention – step for step at line one before falling in a match tiebreaker. Stevens took the first set off Boniel, 6-2, and ran out to a 3-0 lead in the second set before Boniel stormed back to win the second set in a tiebreaker.
 
Boniel fell behind early in the ensuing match tiebreaker, however, as he trailed Stevens 6-1 at one point. Boniel still trailed 7-3 but then made a run to get back within one at 8-7. Boniel got even with Stevens at 9-all, but Stevens won the final two points to take their match 6-2, 6-7, 1-0 (11-9).
 
A win over Stevens would have given Boniel his fourth over a Pac-12 opponent this season, after he won three matches against Pac-12 opponents during the 2017 fall season. Boniel beat Oregon's Armando Soemarno in the first round of the Dar Walters Fall Classic in October, and then beat Stanford's Nikita Demir and California's Dominic Barretto at the ITA Northwest Regional two weeks later.
 
Junior newcomer Avery West also showed good flashes in his match against Oregon's Cormac Clissold at line three. West ran out to an early lead in the first set against Clissold, only to have Clissold come back and win the first set, 6-3. West stayed with Clissold in the second set, too, but eventually lost, 6-4.
 
West's fellow junior newcomer Gabe Souza also took five games off of Oregon's Ethan Young-Smith at line six, but still lost 6-2, 6-3.
 
The Ducks won the other three singles matches while only dropping two games or less, and won all three doubles matches by 6-2 scores or better.
 
The Vikings take a weekend off before returning to action with a home doubleheader against Puget Sound and Willamette on Jan. 26. The Vikings face Puget Sound at 2:30 p.m. at Club Green Meadows in Vancouver, Wash., before facing Willamette at 6 p.m.

Oregon 7, Portland State 0
Jan 12, 2018 at Eugene, Ore. (Student Tennis Center) 
 

Singles competition

1. STEVENS, Simon (UO) def. BONIEL, Nathan (PSU) 6-2, 6-7, 1-0 (11-9)

2. TANAKA, Akihiro (UO) def. EDWARDS, Tommy (PSU) 6-0, 6-1

3. CLISSOLD, Cormac (UO) def. WEST, Avery (PSU) 6-3, 6-4

4. OSHIMA, Riki (UO) def. ROBERTS, Sam (PSU) 6-1, 6-0

5. GENTRY, Ty (UO) def. BUKHARI, Majeed (PSU) 6-1, 6-1

6. YOUNG-SMITH, Ethan (UO) def. SOUZA, Gabe (PSU) 6-2, 6-3

Doubles competition

1. SOEMARNO, Armando/ROBERTS, Charles (UO) def. EDWARDS, Tommy/WEST, Avery (PSU) 6-2

2. TANAKA, Akihiro/OSHIMA, Riki (UO) def. BONIEL, Nathan/ROBERTS, Sam (PSU) 6-1

3. STEVENS, Simon/GENTRY, Ty (UO) def. SOUZA, Gabe/BUKHARI, Majeed (PSU) 6-2

Match Notes

Portland State 0-1

Oregon 2-0; Regional ranking #3

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