Vikings Head Out on Three-Match Spring Break Road Trip

Spring break brings with it a chance for a new start for the Portland State women's tennis team. After already playing four of the top five teams in the Big Sky conference, the Vikings will have a chance at Northern Colorado and Northern Arizona - currently 10th and fifth in the standings - on the road this week.

Portland State will also take on UTEP in a neutral site non-conference match played in Flagstaff.

The first conference win has eluded the Vikings so far this year, but improved energy and overall play the last two weeks has head coach Jay Sterling excited looking forward at the final month of the season.

The Vikings have seven matches remaining, five of which will come on the road. Sterling sees the potential for many wins over the final stretch, however, particularly if the team can continue to improve and continue to get healthy.

At home the last two weeks, Portland State challenged four-time defending champ Idaho and third-place Eastern Washington in tight matches. They did this shorthanded, playing without a couple of players that would normally have been in the lineup.

Two weeks ago, they fell 6-1 to Eastern Washington. Last week, Idaho defeated PSU by the same score. While there were moral lessons learned during both, Sterling and the team are ready to pick up some actual W's.

Perhaps the best opportunity of the season so far presents itself during a midweek match against Northern Colorado. The Bears are 6-9 overall, but just 1-5 in the Big Sky and a game ahead of Portland State in the standings.

The Vikings will need everyone playing well to get the win, something that has been coming into focus the last two weeks. Eszter Zador is coming off a dominant win against Idaho, rolling to her first win at No. 3 this season 6-2, 6-1. She is now 5-2 overall, 4-2 in Big Sky matches.

Lotti Meszaros had a big win against Eastern Washington and went three sets with her Idaho opponent last weekend. She has two wins in her past three matches at No. 2 and has competed in every match played there this season.

The other Vikings have also shown improvement the last two week, possibly setting the stage for a season turnaround during the Spring Break trip.

SCOUTING NORTHERN COLORADO

-The Bears are 6-9 overall and 1-5 in Big Sky play. They enter on a two-match losing streak, but lost both by just one point. UNC's only conference win this year came on Mar. 3 against Montana State in Greeley.
-Northern Colorado has three players at .500 in conference play - Sandra Keta, Synclair Larson and Raffa Mora. Keta comes into the Portland State match on a four-match winning streak at No. 3.
-Doubles has been the strong suit for the Bears this year. They have a .389 winning percentage in conference doubles matches compared to .306 in singles matches.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. NORTHERN COLORADO

The Vikings are 3-8 all-time vs. Northern Colorado. The Vikings are 1-5 in matches played in Greeley. The Bears have won the last two meetings, both by a 4-3 score. The last meeting came on March 18, 2018 in Portland.

SCOUTING NORTHERN ARIZONA

-Northern Arizona enters the week at 5-8/2-1 BSC. The only conference loss came on the road against Sacramento State on Mar. 18.
-Chiara Tomasetti is a perfect 12-0 this year at No. 1 singles. The junior is a two-time First Team All-Big Sky selection. Emilie Haakansson is 3-0 in Big Sky matches this year as well.
-Northern Arizona has two doubles team's with 2-1 records in Big Sky play. Overall, they have a .444 winning percentage in doubles.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. NORTHERN ARIZONA

The Vikings are 1-18 all-time vs. Northern Arizona. The Lumberjacks have won the previous four meetings, including a 6-1 win on March 9, 2018 in Portland. The Vikings have never won in Flagstaff.

SCOUTING UTEP

-UTEP is 4-11 overall and enter this week on a two-match losing streak.
-Kirsten Prelle is 8-5 at No. 1 singles, the only UTEP player with a winning record this year. They have been better in doubles play, where they are close to .500 overall in duals.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. UTEP

This is the first-ever meeting between the two teams.

E.Z. DOES IT

A hot start to the season for junior Eszter Zador has set the pace for one of the top returners from a year ago. She is 5-2/4-2 BSC on the year while playing between No. 3 and 4. Her five wins are the most on the team.

Last season, the junior from Hungary finished 5-6 in the Big Sky while competing at the No. 2 line. She finished the fall with winning one singles match and three doubles.

Zador's five wins at No. 2 are tied for the eighth most in that spot in Portland State history. She is even higher in win percentage at No. 2 singles, where her .455 percentage is good for third all time. She recently cracked the top 10 and is currently 9th in school history with four career wins at No. 4.

Zador met the minimum match requirement to qualify for the program record in winning percentage with her 20th singles match. She currently sits in 5th place in PSU history with a .545 winning percentage.

She is also close to breaking into the top 20 in Portland State history for total singles wins, needing just three more this year. Zador is tied for ninth in program history with nine Big Sky singles wins.

WHAT'S NEW?

This season, Portland State had three newcomers join that could each see a lot of playing time in 2019. Lotti Meszaros (Radford) and Nina Nikitovic (Portland) come to the Park Blocks by way of transfer.

Meszaros finished the fall season 6-7 in singles play and has seen time playing at the top spot this spring. She claimed the individual title at the PNW Open by winning the first three matches of her Viking career.

She won her first dual as a Viking against Lewis-Clark State (3/9/19). She won her first career Big Sky Conference match against Eastern Washington (3/17/19) with a two-set win at No. 2. She is 2-6 on the year in singles and 2-4 in doubles matches.

Nikitovic battled injury in the fall, but did combine with Meszaros to go 2-2 as a doubles team, including wins against competition from Portland and Big Sky rival Sacramento State. She is now playing No. 2 for the Vikings and is off to a good start in the spring. Nikitovic is 3-3 on the season, one of three Viking players with at least a .500 record.

True freshman Jacinta Milenkoski also had an impressive debut in the fall. She reached the final of the PNW Open singles draw and finished the fall with a 5-6 record in singles play. Milenkoski also found success in the doubles competition with Taylor Rees, as the team finished the fall 2-4.

She made her spring debut against Idaho State (3/1/19) after missing the first matches of the season because of injury. She played No. 1 and won her first dual as a Viking against Lewis-Clark State (3/9/19). She also won her first doubles match while playing at No. 1 with Nikitovic.

TRENDING UP(ENIECE)

Sophomore Gerda Upeniece has been playing well this season, going 2-0 while playing at No. 6. She is 1-2 in Big Sky matches so far and has the second best winning percentage on the team. She is also 2-2 in doubles play, the only Viking with a .500 or better record.

REES' PIECES

Taylor Rees has a chance to go down as one of the all-time best at Portland State. She is the career leader for both total wins (14) and winning percentage (.538) at No. 6 singles. In doubles, Rees is fifth all-time with 13 wins at No. 2. She is also sixth in winning percentage (.419) at No. 2 doubles.

This season, Rees could make a run at some all-time marks. She is currently 10th all-time in career winning percentage (.439) and just one win away from making the top 10 in career wins. In doubles, she needs just three total wins to break into the top 10 total career wins. She is also tied for fourth in career Big Sky singles wins (15) and could possibly rise into the top three this season.

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Players Mentioned

Taylor Rees: Senior; 3L

Gerda Upeniece: Sophomore; 1L

Eszter Zador: Junior; 1L

Jacinta Milenkoski: Freshman; HS

Nina Nikitovic: Sophomore; TR

Lotti Meszaros: Sophomore; TR

Players Mentioned

Taylor Rees
: Senior; 3L

Gerda Upeniece
: Sophomore; 1L

Eszter Zador
: Junior; 1L

Jacinta Milenkoski
: Freshman; HS

Nina Nikitovic
: Sophomore; TR

Lotti Meszaros
: Sophomore; TR