LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The Pilots men's tennis team left sunny Portland for rainy Southern California this weekend and after a few rain delays pulled out an impressive 4-1 victory over the No. 58-ranked Loyola Marymount Lions Saturday afternoon at the LMU Tennis Center.

The Pilots (13-6, 4-2 WCC) picked up their second win over a ranked opponent and crucial road victory against a West Coast Conference foe. The Lions (9-8, 2-3) had won four of their previous five matches, with three of those victories coming against ranked opposition.

With the match already delayed and intermittent showers coming through, the teams agreed to play singles and the Pilots were able to clinch and led the sixth and final singles match in the third set when it was decided.

"I am really proud of this group of guys," Portland head coach Aaron Gross said. "We waited around a good part of the day thinking that we were not going to play because of the rain. When we finally did get going, it spit here and there throughout the match, but we just kept going."

Once again playing a singles lineup featuring four sophomores and two freshmen, the Pilots showed experience beyond their years. Freshmen Felix Fan and Carlos Donat each won handily at the No. 5 and No. 6 positions, respectively, to give the Pilots the early edge.

"Felix and Carlos continue to be such stable spots for us in the line-up, which is really cool to say of two freshmen," Gross noted.

Sophomore Alex Wallace then outlasted Lukas Moenter in three sets at No. 4, setting up sophomore Pierre Garcia to clinch the match with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-0 comeback win over Joat Farah at No. 3 singles.

Sophomore Michail Pervolarakis was leading 4-2 in the third set at the No. 1 spot at the time the overall match was clinched, while Errol Smith defeated Mathieu Garcia in three sets at No. 2 singles for LMU's lone point.

"Alex Wallace and Pierre Garcia each came up big today," Gross said. "Both won gritty three setters and it was especially satisfying to see Pierre get the clinching point for us today. He has been right there a couple of times to put us over the top against a couple of ranked opponents and came up just a hair short. Today he just refused to be denied. Just really solid tennis in sets two and three and I couldn't be happier for him.

"Although he didn't get to finish, Mike Pervolarakis came back from a set down to take the lead in the third set and played great. This was an excellent road victory for our team."

Portland will turn around and visit No. 53 Pepperdine on Sunday for a noon match at Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center. Fans can follow the match in real-time with stat updates here or Twitter updates courtesy of @PeppTennis

Portland 4, #58 LMU 1
Los Angeles, Calif. (LMU Tennis Center)
April 9, 2016

Singles
1. Cristobal Rivera (LMU) vs. Michail Pervolarakis (PORT) 6-4, 4-6, 2-4, unfinished
2. Errol Smith (LMU) def. Mathieu Garcia (PORT) 2-6, 6-3, 6-0
3. Pierre Garcia (PORT) def. Joat Farah (LMU) 3-6, 6-3, 6-0
4. Alex Wallace (PORT) def. Lukas Moenter (LMU) 6-3, 3-6, 6-2
5. Felix Fan (PORT) def. Luke Bohuslav (LMU) 6-4, 6-3
6. Carlos Donat (PORT) def. Jamie Thorp (LMU) 6-3, 6-1

Doubles
1. Michail Pervolarakis/Mathieu Garcia (PORT) vs. Joat Farah/Errol Smith (LMU) no result
2. Kent Andreasen/Alex Wallace (PORT) vs. Charles Boyce/Cristobal Rivera (LMU) no result
3. Felix Fan/Pierre Garcia (PORT) vs. Lukas Moenter/Luke Bohuslav (LMU) no result

Match Notes:
Portland 13-6, 4-2 WCC
LMU 9-8, 2-3 WCC; National ranking #58