PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland men's tennis team secured the No. 3 seed in the upcoming West Coast Conference Championships with a 4-1 victory over No. 59 Gonzaga Saturday at the Louisiana Pacific Tennis Center. The Pilots conclude the regular season 10-9 overall, 6-3 in league play and a perfect 8-0 at home.

"That was a great win today," Portland head coach Aaron Gross said. "Not because we played great, but because we competed really well. Gonzaga has had an amazing season for a reason. They are deep and experienced, and they compete very hard. We had to match them in competing to have a chance and I think we did that."

Portland took the doubles point behind wins at the No. 1 and No. 3 positions. The No. 35-ranked tandem of Sema Pankin and Eleftherios Neos picked up 6-2 win at the top of the order and seniors Issa Yoshida and Nicklas Oberg were 6-1 winners at the No. 3 spot.

Neos doubled the margin with a 6-4, 6-4 win against Oliver Andersson at No. 2 singles and then Pankin rolled to a 7-6, 6-1 victory over Sasha Trkulja at the top of the order.

Matthew Hollingworth picked up the loan point for Gonzaga with a win at No. 3 singles, but the Pilots clinched when freshman Oscar Brown defeated Theo McDonald 7-5, 6-1 at the No. 6 position.

"We played some really good doubles which obviously turned out to be a big difference," Gross said. "The seniors all really stepped up today and Oscar was clutch with another clinch for us. It's great to finish the regular season on a high note. Now we go to the conference tournament on Thursday and keep battling until they tell us we have to go home."

The WCC Tennis Championships will be held April 28-30 at the Ojai Valley Athletic Club (OVAC) and the Weil Tennis Academy (WEIL) in Ojai, Calif. Portland will enter the tournament as the No. 3 seed and face the No. 6 seed on Thursday at 1 p.m. at OVAC with the winner advancing to Friday's 1:30 p.m. semifinals against the No. 2 seed. Final standings and the complete bracket will be announced on Sunday.

Portland 4, No. 59 Gonzaga 1
Portland, Ore. (Louisiana Pacific Tennis Center)
April 23, 2022

Singles
1. Sema Pankin (POR) def. Sasha Trkulja (GU) 7-6 (5), 6-1
2. Eleftherios Neos (POR) def. Oliver Andersson (GU) 6-4, 6-4
3. Matthew Hollingworth (GU) def. Nicolas Ocana (POR) 7-6 (10), 6-4
4. Issa Yoshida (POR) vs. Arthus Bassetiere (GU) 2-6, 7-6 (6-2), 1-1, unfinished
5. Nikolas Tvedt (POR) vs. Tom Hann (GU) 5-7, 4-5, unfinished
6. Oscar Brown (POR) def. Theo McDonald (GU) 7-5, 6-1

Doubles
1. #35 Pankin/Neos (POR) def. Hollingworth/Trkulja (GU) 6-2
2. Ocana/Tvedt (POR) vs. Andersson/Hann (GU) 4-3, unfinished
3. Yoshida/Nicklas Oberg (POR) def. Bassetiere/McDonald (GU) 6-1

Match Notes:
Gonzaga 17-5, 6-3 WCC; National ranking #59
Portland 10-9, 6-3 WCC
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (2,1,3,6)