PORTLAND, Ore. - Sporting a completely new roster this year, the Portland State men's tennis team kicked off its 2022 fall schedule over the weekend, competing at the ITA Northwest Regional tournament in Spokane, Wash. 

Four transfers and four freshmen make up Portland State's roster of eight newcomers this fall. There was no sign of inexperience among the new Vikings this past weekend, as all six who competed came away with a win. 

"It's always tough when our first tournament of the year is the ITA Regionals, but the guys did great," Fourth-year head coach Vetu Mam said. "Everyone came out to perform and everyone walked away with a victory, whether it was in the main draw or consolation bracket."

Two Vikings came away victorious in the opening round of the main draw. Senior transfer Andrea Brignacca earned a 6-7 (2), 6-4, 6-2 win over Portland's Fabian Gusic before taking Oregon's Luke Vandecasteele to several match points in the round of 32, eventually falling 6-2, 5-7, 7-5. Freshman Simon Kuszynski also advanced to the second round, beating Seattle's Dario Ristovksi 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 before dropping his next match to Gonzaga's Matthew Hollingworth. Junior transfer Jan Semerak was the lone Viking to advance to the round of 16 in the main draw. Following an opening round bye, Semerak cruised past Washington's Jacob Sleight 6-2, 6-2 before he also saw his weekend come to an end against Hollingworth. 

Freshman Gregory Gruenig and transfers Jonas Hembo Mathiasen and Andrin Zuellig had strong showings in the consultation bracket, each punching a ticket to the quarterfinal round. Gruenig advanced with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Eastern Washington's Brady Thomas. Zuellig also beat his EWU opponent, pulling off a 6-3, 4-6, 10-8 win over Tyler Dalos to stay alive. Mathiaasen gave the Vikings their second singles win over Seattle, beating Jayden Harrison 6-3, 6-0. All three Vikings fell in their quarterfinal matches. 

Despite a winless weekend in doubles action, Brignacca and Semerak fared well in the East Flight. The duo pushed Oregon's Vandecasteele and Ray Lo to several match points before dropping the contest 8-7 (8) to end the weekend. 

"Overall it was a great learning experience for my guys, for myself and [assistant coach] Javier," Mam said. "We've been working with these guys for a week and a half, so now we have a better idea of how they compete and what we need to do moving forward. I'm very pleased with how these guys represented and competed for Portland State this weekend and we're looking forward to the next fall tournament."

Two tournaments remain on the Vikings' fall schedule. They'll head back to Spokane for the Gonzaga Invitational on Nov. 4-6, before finishing the season in Eugene on Nov. 11-13 at the Duck Invitational.