SAN DIEGO, Calif. – The Portland Pilots have secured the No. 4 seed at this week's West Coast Conference Tennis Championships and will face the No. 5 seed BYU Cougars in the tournament's opening round on Thursday. The match will begin at 1 p.m. at the Aztec Tennis Complex and will have live video and scoring available.

The Pilots (11-9, 5-4 WCC) won six of their last nine matches and finished in sole possession of fourth place in the league standings to close out the regular season. The top six teams in the WCC participate in the conference tournament with the top two seeds earning an opening round bye. The Portland-BYU winner will face top-seeded San Diego in Friday's semifinals at 1:30 p.m., while the tournament championship match is slated for Saturday at 2 p.m. 

Portland won the previous meeting with the Cougars (6-15, 4-5) this year by a 4-0 margin on March 25 at the Louisiana Pacific Tennis Center.

The Pilots are anchored by a trio of fifth-year seniors in Sema Pankin, Eleftherios Neos and Issa Yoshida. Pankin enters the tournament on an eight-match win streak and is ranked No. 100 nationally. He is 23-9 overall this year, 14-5 in dual matches and 7-1 against WCC opposition.

Neos recorded an 11-6 dual match record at the No. 2 singles position, while Yoshida was 6-2 in dual contests.

Pankin and Neos have also been dominant in doubles play with a 9-5 dual record and 6-2 mark in league play at the top spot.
  Get Your Tickets Now!
Secure your spot now for any upcoming Portland Pilots ticketed home event by visiting PortlandPilots.com/Tickets or by downloading the Portland Pilots App.  For group and fan experience package information, email pilotsboxoffice@up.edu.

Donate Today
Fans interested in making a contribution to the Pilot Athletic Fund can do so by clicking here. Your gift directly helps our nearly 300 student-athletes as they strive to make a difference in our community and achieve academic and athletic excellence. Thank you for support of Pilot Athletics!

Follow Along With the Action
Get the latest news and information about your favorite University of Portland athletic programs by visiting PortlandPilots.com. You can also follow along for the most dynamic coverage and team-centric content by following us on Twitter, liking us on Facebook, and following us on Instagram.