WALLA WALLA, Wash. – The Lewis & Clark College men's tennis team earned the No. 3 seed and will make its 11th consecutive appearance in the Northwest Conference Championships this weekend in Walla Walla. The Pioneers will face second-seeded George Fox University in the second semifinal on Saturday.
FOLLOW LIVE
Whitman College Athletics will provide live video and live stats coverage of the tournament.
THE MATCHUP
#3 Lewis & Clark (13-5, 10-4 NWC) vs. #2 George Fox (12-6, 12-2 NWC), 4:00 p.m. Postseason matches are played until one team wins four points. The team that wins at least two of the three doubles matches earns one point, with each singles match counting for one point.
PREVIOUS MEETINGS
Feb. 23 – George Fox 6, Lewis & Clark 1
In a match delayed five hours due to humidity in the facility at George Fox, sophomore
Joey Lyon earned the lone point for the Pioneers with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Zach Moore at No. 2 singles. Lyon and doubles partner
Noah Sutin also won 6-1 at No. 2 doubles, but the Bruins took the other two doubles matches to secure the point. Senior
Matt Chio (No. 3 singles) and junior
Kai Wills (No. 5) each fell in three sets.
March 30 – Lewis & Clark 5, George Fox 2
On Senior Day, the Pioneers snapped a 10-match losing streak to the Bruins. Lyon and Sutin earned a win at No. 1 doubles, and Chio and junior
Spencer Loucks clinched the doubles point with a 6-3 victory at No. 3. Lyon lost in straight sets at No. 1 singles, and Sutin dropped a three-setter at No. 2, but the Pioneers swept the remaining matches. Wills clinched the win with a straight-sets victory at No. 6, while Chio (No. 4), junior
Wade McDermott (No. 3) and first-year
Arnav Bishnoi (No. 5) each rallied for three-set wins.
POSTSEASON MEETINGS (1999-2023)
Lewis & Clark and George Fox have met eight times in the postseason, with the Bruins holding a 6-2 edge. This marks the fourth time in five years the programs will face off in the semifinals. The three most recent meetings came in No. 1 vs. No. 4 matchups hosted by George Fox. The last time the two teams met in a No. 2 vs. No. 3 semifinal was in 2018, when the Pioneers prevailed 5-3 in Walla Walla.
SCOUTING THE PIONEERS
Lewis & Clark enters the tournament as the No. 3 seed for the second straight season. The Pioneers have won four of their last five matches, with the lone loss coming at Whitman in the regular-season finale.
Seven players have reached double-digit singles wins this season, and all three doubles teams have earned 12 or more victories. Lyon and Sutin set a new program record with 17 overall wins and 11 conference victories as a tandem. McDermott leads the team with 20 singles wins and 10 in conference play. Bishnoi has 16 wins and a 9-3 NWC mark.
Lyon began the season at No. 2 singles before switching with Sutin to take over the top spot. Lyon owns 12 singles wins with a 7-4 conference record, while Sutin has 10 wins and is 5-6 in the NWC. Chio (13-8, 5-5) and Wills (11-12, 7-6) round out the starting lineup.
In doubles, Lyon and Sutin have gone 11-2 in NWC play. Wills and McDermott posted a 7-6 conference mark, and Chio and Loucks finished 8-5. The Pioneers are 11-2 when winning the doubles point, with both losses coming to Whitman.
SCOUTING THE BRUINS
The four-time defending champions secured the No. 2 seed after splitting matches with Whitman and Lewis & Clark during the regular season. George Fox enters Saturday's semifinal on a four-match winning streak, with its most recent loss coming to the Pioneers.
In the latest ITA regional rankings (April 16), George Fox's top singles player Lars Schmassmann, was ranked No. 12 in the West Region. Teammate Luke Yang finished NWC play 11-2 and is 12-5 overall.
ELSEWHERE IN THE BRACKET
In Saturday's first semifinal, No. 4 Pacific University will face top-seeded and host Whitman at 1 p.m. The Blues swept the Boxers during the regular season, earning a 5-2 win in Forest Grove and a 6-1 win at home. Whitman is ranked No. 54 in Division III and No. 8 in the West Region.
Their top singles player, Alexander Stage, is No. 12 in the region, and the duo of Stage and Noah Baker is ranked 10th in doubles.
WHAT'S NEXT
The winners of Saturday's semifinals will meet in the 2025 Northwest Conference Championship Match at noon on Sunday.
