TACOMA, Wash. -- The Lewis & Clark Pioneers lost 6-3 to Pacific back on Mar. 13 at the L&C Tennis Dome, and the season has taken a turn for the better since.
Following the loss to the Boxers, who are tied for the Northwest Conference lead with Whitman, Lewis & Clark has beaten its first nationally-ranked program, became nationally-ranked itself and has won eight of its last 10 duals including five straight in the NWC. Not to mention, the Pios ended Whitman's nearly nine-year streak without a loss to a NWC opponent.
The Pioneers are rolling.
Lewis & Clark beat Puget Sound and Pacific Lutheran on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, by 9-0 finals. At the Tennis Pavilion against the Loggers, none of Lewis & Clark's singles opponents won more than two games, and only one Pacific Lutheran competitor did the following day at the Sprinker Recreation Center.
Raed Attia played the No. 1 position both days, winning 6-0, 6-2 against Joe McRoberts on Saturday, and 6-0, 6-0 against Noel Oteng-Mensah on Sunday. Kevin Ross was a 6-0, 6-2 winner against Puget Sound's Daniel Deuel before beating PLU's DJ Pekoc, 6-3, 6-0, in the third position.
Harrison Collins improved to 13-4 this season with a No. 3 victory over Riley Inn, 6-1, 6-1, on Saturday and a 6-1, 6-0 defeat of Chan Thourk in the fourth spot on Sunday.
Brenden Barrows and Daniel Hahm also played both days. Barrows won 6-1, 6-0 at No. 5 against Chris Severt before a 6-2, 6-2 final against Alberto Leal in the No. 6 match on Sunday. Hahm, the most recent NWC Student-Athlete of the Week, beat Chet Selis of Puget Sound at No. 4 and Justin deMattos of PLU at No. 5 by 6-1, 6-1 scores.
Michael Brewer won the No. 6 match on Saturday, 6-0, 6-0, over Jacob Kompolt. Gordon Barrows was the No. 2 winner on Sunday, 6-2, 6-0, over James Okubo.
In doubles pairings against Puget Sound, Gordon and Brenden Barrows won 8-3 over McRoberts and Inn at No. 1. Ross and Collins defeated Nicholas Lupan and Deuel, 8-3, in the second spot, while Pim Trouerbach and Keane Hindle (pictured right) were 8-4 winners over Andrew Struzenberg and Selis.
Against Pacific Lutheran, the Barrowses were the top match winners over Okubo and Leal, 8-3. At No. 2, Ross and Collins beat Oteng-Mensah and Pekoc, 8-0, while Hindle and Trouerbach won 8-2 over Thourk and deMattos.
Entering the weekend, Whitman and Pacific were tied atop the NWC Championship Standings, which determine the four teams that will play in the NWC Championship on Apr. 23-24. Lewis & Clark had one point and was tied with five other teams for the fourth spot, but earned two additional points because of a season series sweep of both Puget Sound and Pacific Lutheran.
The regular season ends with matches at Linfield (9 a.m.) and Willamette (12 p.m.) on Saturday.
Other Northwest Conference Scores
Saturday
Whitman 5, Lewis-Clark St. 4
Whitman 7, Whitworth 2
George Fox 9, Willamette 0
Linfield 7, Pacific Lutheran 2
Sunday
Whitworth 6, Lewis-Clark St. 3
Willamette 5, Linfield 4
George Fox 9, Puget Sound 0
