PORTLAND, Ore. - After falling short of a postseason berth last season, the Portland State women's tennis team made sure to redeem itself this year, qualifying for the 2025 Big Sky Tournament set to begin later this week in Phoenix, Ariz. (April 24-26).
The sixth-seeded Vikings will begin their title run on Thursday, April 24, against No. 3 seed Idaho at 8 a.m. PT at the Phoenix Tennis Center. The winner will advance to the semifinals, set for Friday, April 25.
This week's tournament will mark the seventh in program history for the Vikings and, impressively, the fourth in the last five seasons, following a three-year consecutive stretch from 2021 to 2023. Present for all three of those postseason trips was current head coach Josiah Petersen, who took over the program earlier this year after serving as an assistant since 2021.
Petersen will make his first postseason appearance as head coach this Thursday, leading a team that posted a 5-10 overall record and a 3-5 mark in conference play. That performance was enough to earn the Vikings a spot in the six-team field and secure a trip to Phoenix. Historically, PSU has struggled in postseason play, with a 2-6 all-time record. However, one of those wins came in their most recent postseason in 2023, where they fell just a 4-3 result short of reaching the program's first-ever championship title match.
The Vandals, seeded No. 3, had a strong 2025 campaign, finishing 14-5 overall and 6-2 in Big Sky play. This included a 7-0 sweep of the Vikings in Moscow on Sunday, March 9. The Vikings will have the opportunity to avenge that sweep on Thursday. Senior captain Nika Beukers, who has solidified her place as one of the greatest players in program history, will lead the charge. Beukers has been a crucial asset to this otherwise young Viking squad, which includes four freshmen and one sophomore alongside her.
Playing all 15 regular season matches at the No. 1 spot in both singles and doubles, Beukers enters her third Big Sky Tournament with a 6-8 singles record and a 7-7 doubles mark on the year. Four of those doubles wins came alongside freshman Kasumi Hirayama, who has had an impressive debut season with the Vikings, posting a team-best 7-5 singles record. After pairing up midway through the year, the duo quickly established themselves, claiming three wins against conference opponents.
Scarlett Perkins and Hana Abdelhamid also strengthened the Vikings' doubles lineup, finishing with a 5-9 record, including a 4-4 mark at line two. Perkins earned five singles victories, while freshmen Abdelhamid and Ayra Salim each secured four wins.
Thursday's opening-round match between Idaho and Portland State will be the first postseason meeting between the two programs. The Vikings are 5-15 all-time against the Vandals.
Live scoring for all of this week's matches in Phoenix can be found here: 2025 Big Sky Tournament Live Scoring
2025 Big Sky Women's Tennis Championship Schedule
April 24-26 | Phoenix Tennis Center
All Matches Start at 8:00 a.m. PT
Thursday, April 24
Match 1: #4 Montana State vs. #5 Idaho State
Match 2: #3 Idaho vs. #6 Portland State
Friday, April 25
Match 3: #1 Northern Arizona vs. Lowest Seed Winner
Match 4: #2 Sacramento State vs. Highest Seed Winner
Saturday, April 26
Championship: Match 3 Winner vs. Match 4 Winner
