Idaho’s tennis teams met very different fates Saturday.
The women’s team (2-1) competed at Portland, notching its first win of the spring season. Meanwhile in Spokane, the men’s team (2-1) fell short in a close competition against Gonzaga.
The women’s team did not come by their first victory easily.
Luck seemed to be on the Vandals’ side after Portland was forced to forfeit a doubles match. Idaho secured the doubles point after a 6-3 win by sophomore Marianna Petrei and junior Lucia Badillos.
Down 1-0, Portland had to forfeit a match again, this time in singles play. Petrei earned a third point for the Vandals after she defeated Jelena Lukic 6-2, 6-2.
The Pilots rallied back on the No. 2 court when Jelena Lazarevic overcame Badillos in a close match.
Another nail biter on court No. 3 brought Portland closer to pulling an upset. Tatiana Grigoryan gained an edge on freshman Jessica Brzozowska after winning the first set 6-2. Brzozowska tied the match after winning the next set 6-4, but lost the tiebreaker.
With a 3-2 lead, Idaho relied on sophomore Maria Tavares to seal the win. She succeeded with ease, defeating Anna Ogberg 6-1, 6-1.
The women’s team then took the short trip to Portland State. With a win under their belt and momentum on their side, the Vandals defeated the Vikings in a 4-0 rout.
The Vandals jumped to an early lead after two doubles victories, and Idaho’s top players took care of the rest.
Petrei won handedly from the No. 1 court, while Brzozowska showed her talents in a 6-3, 6-0 win. Batiri cemented the win for Idaho with a dominating 6-1, 6-1 victory on court No. 4.
Idaho will stay on the road, taking on UNLV Feb. 10.
Meanwhile in Gonzaga, the men’s team fell into trouble while facing the Bulldogs.
A rocky start in doubles helped the Bulldogs gain momentum. Sophomore Felipe Fonesca and freshman Guilherme Scarpelli fell early to their opponents 6-4.
Freshman Carlos Longhi Neto and junior Mark Kovacs tied the point after a win on the No. 1 court, but it was not enough to seal the win following a loss by sophomore Lucas Coutinho and freshman Esteban Santibanez.
Idaho quickly rallied back from the early deficit. Scarpelli rebounded from his opening loss to defeat Kyle Everly 6-4, 6-3. Longhi Neto earned Idaho’s second point on the No. 2 court, beating Sam Feit 6-3, 7-5.
The Bulldogs’ Raudhan O’Sullivan brought his team within one point after beating Kovacs 7-5, 6-4 on the No.1 court.
Gonzaga tied the match at 3-3 following a win by Simon Homedes Dualde over Coutinho.
Santibanez and Ronzai Saurombe battled for the win on the No. 4 court. Santibanez took an early lead and won the first set 6-4. However, Saurombe came back in the second to win 6-4. The tiebreaking set that would determine the entire set came down to the wire. Santibanez kept pace with Saurombe, but lost 6-3.
The men’s team returns to Moscow to play its first home match of the season against Sacramento State. The Vandals will face the Hornets 4 p.m. Feb 12.
Brandon Hill can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @brandonmtnhill