PALO ALTO, Calif. – The Portland State women's tennis team opened its 2022 fall schedule at the ITA Northwest Regional over the weekend. Six Vikings took the court at Stanford University, including three newcomers. 

"It was great to get out there and play some meaningful matches," Viking Head Coach Kyle Russell said. "I knew it wasn't going to be clean being our first tournament, but there was a lot to be optimistic about."

Graduate transfer Nell Arendt and sophomore Nika Beukers posted a pair of wins for the Vikings in the opening round of the main singles draw. Arendt notched her first win as a Viking 7-5, 6-2 over Seattle's Marija Elenova before falling to Cal's Erin Richardson 6-2, 6-4 in the round of 64. Beukers pulled off a gutsy 7-5, 7-6 (3) victory over Portland's Likhitha Kalava before eventually falling to Cal Poly's Peyton Dunkle 6-1, 6-2. 

Portland State's Makoto Ohara pushed Oregon's Jo-Yee Chan to a third set before ultimately falling 6-1, 3-6, 6-2. Masha Ponomareva also battled in the opening round but lost to San Francisco's Hana Gamracy, 6-4, 7-6 (5). After a close opening set, Maddie Egan dropped her match 7-6 (2), 6-1 to Cal Poly's Sasha Ozerets. Freshman Elizabeth Strongina had a challenging collegiate debut, falling 6-3, 6-1 to Saint Mary's Stefanie Silva. 

Faced with a difficult task in the opening round of the main doubles draw, the Vikings were unable to pull off a win against teams from Oregon, Gonzaga, and Washington State. 

"I feel we came away knowing where we are and where we can go with some hard work," Russell said. "We are excited to build off of this first step."

The Vikings have two tournaments remaining on their fall schedule. They'll travel to Spokane for the Gonzaga Invitational on Oct. 28 before closing out the season in Northridge at the CSUN Invitational on Nov. 11.