On Monday, the Portland State men’s tennis team saw its playoff chances fade after both the PSU men’s and women’s teams lost to Northern Arizona at the Club Green Meadows in Vancouver, Wash.
Monday’s result has profound consequences for the men’s team’s playoff ambitions. The Vikings slipped from fourth to sixth place in the Big Sky standings after the 5–2 loss. They now hold a 3–4 record in conference, and are 6–10 overall.
In a seesaw match that saw the advantage swing from one team to the other, the Viks narrowly lost the doubles point. Portland State lost all three matches in the doubles rubber with scores of 8–5, 8–7(3) and 9–7.
In singles competition, juniors Chris Rice and Alex VanDerschelden won at lines one and two, but the Viks lost the deciding battle on line five to concede the match to the second-place Lumberjacks.
With only four teams entering the playoffs this season, the Viks must win their last game against struggling Idaho State and hope for favorable results elsewhere in order to qualify. Along with PSU, Eastern Washington and Montana are both vying for the final playoff position.
All three teams have a trio of conference wins already, but Montana has three matches left while Eastern Washington has two games in hand. In contrast, PSU plays its final game of the season against Idaho State at 5 p.m. on Saturday at the Louisiana-Pacific Tennis Center.
For the women’s tennis team, Monday marked the seventh consecutive loss. Freshman Tara Vadali was the only PSU player to win a set (3–6, 6–3, 2–6) over first-placed Northern Arizona. The women are now 0–7 in the Big Sky and 2–16 overall.
The women next take on Idaho State at the Louisiana-Pacific Tennis Center at 9 a.m. on Saturday in a battle to avoid finishing last in the conference. Idaho State is on an eight-game losing streak and has yet to win a Big Sky game this season.