PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland Pilots were missing three of six players in the regular lineup due to injury, but the team had numerous players step up in a 7-0 sweep of Army on Friday at the Louisiana Pacific Tennis Center. It marked the 23rd consecutive home win for the Pilots and fifth straight win this season.

Portland improved to 5-3, while the Golden Knights fell to 2-7 overall.

The Pilots were without No. 21-ranked Michail Pervolarakis, senior Alex Wallace and freshman Tom Hann. With half of the singles lineup unavailable, Portland got big performances from the regulars and breakout contributions from younger players.

Portland set the tone early in doubles with the Carlos Donat and Jamie Fisher sweeping No. 2 doubles followed by Mathieu and Pierre Garcia clinching with a 6-3 win at the No. 1 position.

"There were lots of highlights today," Portland head coach Aaron Gross said. "We played some great doubles. Jamie Fisher and Carlos Donat are really clicking right now and the Garcia brothers had a nice win today."

The momentum carried to the top of the singles lineup as the Pilots clinched the match with wins at the top three positions. Mathieu Garcia and Pierre Garcia won in straight sets at the top two spots against Michael Nguyen and Greg Shannon, respectively. Donat then pulled out a three-set win against Myles Conlin to clinch the team victory.

Sophomore Andrew Newell then picked up his first career dual singles victory with a hard-fought win against David Mitchell in a three-setter at No. 4. Fisher also won a super tiebreaker against Dylan Simonsen at No. 5, while freshman Drew Davison picked up a straight sets win against Micheal Sienko at No. 6.

"It was very enjoyable seeing Mathieu play and win on Court 1 for the first time," Gross noted, "and awesome for Drew and Andrew to both get dual match wins today. They have worked hard and it is very nice to see them rewarded with results."

The Pilots will have a quick trip to BYU for a match tomorrow afternoon at 4:30 p.m. (PT). It will be the West Coast Conference opener for both programs.

"We have a quick turnaround in playing at BYU tomorrow," Gross said. "We are definitely looking forward to the challenge of going into a difficult place to play for most visitors and see how we do. The older guys in this group are really seeking opportunities to be tested and the younger players are going to free swing and see how it plays out."
 
Portland 7, Army 0
Portland, Ore. (Louisiana Pacific Tennis Center)
February 16, 2018

Singles
1. Mathieu Garcia (POR) def. Michael Nguyen (ARMY) 6-1, 7-5
2. Pierre Garcia (POR) def. Greg Shannon (ARMY) 6-1, 6-4
3. Carlos Donat (POR) def. Myles Conlin (ARMY) 6-0, 3-6, 6-3
4. Andrew Newell (POR) def. David Mitchell (ARMY) 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 1-0 (10-7)
5. Jamie Fisher (POR) def. Dylan Simonsen (ARMY) 6-1, 6-7 (3-7), 1-0 (10-3)
6. Drew Davison (POR) def. Michael Sienko (ARMY) 7-6 (7-4), 6-1

Doubles
1. Garcia/Garcia (POR) def. Nguyen/Shannon (ARMY) 6-3
2. Donat/Fisher (POR) def. Simonsen/Conlin (ARMY) 6-0
3. Davison/Newell (POR) vs. Mitchell/Grant Patterson (ARMY) 5-5, unfinished

Match Notes:
Army 2-7
Portland 5-3
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (1,2,3,5,4,6)