Contact: Renee Adam
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WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - For the second straight week the duo of Ali Shabib and Niklas Jonssonare in the finals of their doubles draw, while the tandem of Jorg van der Vloet and Matt Kuelkerjoin them in the championship match of their respective bracket. This quartet led the Cleveland State men's tennis team on day two of the Purdue Invitational, as the Vikings had another strong day on the courts.
"Our doubles teams once again had a great day, picking up four big wins for us," head coachBrian Etzkin said. "Ali and Niklas continue to win and they look great on the court. They really showed some composure today in both of their matches and they look like a solid No. 1 doubles team. Jorg and Matt have been working on some weaknesses this weekend and it is good to see their hard work pay off. I am really encouraged by our doubles play so far this season, because if it translates into the spring season it is always easier to win dual meets after you have the doubles point."
Shabib and Jonsson, who are competing in the Flight A Doubles draw, picked up two wins on Saturday, extending their unbeaten streak to seven straight. In their quarterfinal matchup they defeated Green Bay, 8-5 and then picked up a default win over Purdue in the semifinals. They will now face Butler in the championship match, which is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. tomorrow (Sunday, Sept. 23) morning.
Kuelker and van der Vloet also earned a pair of victories today, notching quarterfinal and semifinals wins in the Flight B Doubles draw. They first earned an 8-2 victory over Toledo, then defeated a duo from Western Michigan and Butler, 9-7 to advance to the final match. Their championship match against Green Bay is set for a 2:00 p.m. start tomorrow.
Nolan Marks, who began the invite in the Flight C Singles draw, is still alive in the consolation bracket, advancing to the consolation semifinals. After dropping his opening match yesterday, Marks responded with two wins today over Daniel Etman of Valparaiso (6-2, 6-2) and Eduardo Sztrejtman of IPFW (6-2, 6-3). He will now face Stephen Payne from Western Michigan in the semifinals, which is scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m.
Matt Ford also picked up a singles win for the Vikings Saturday, earning a 1-6, 6-1, 6-3 victory over Butler's Billy Weldon before falling in the semifinals of the Flight B Singles draw.
"We also competed well in singles today, but we still have some work to do and will definitely work on that throughout the fall season," Etzkin said. "Nolan took some steps forward in his play today coming off an injury, and hopefully he can continue to grow and develop his game throughout the fall."
The Vikings will wrap up action at the Purdue Invitational tomorrow (Sunday, Sept. 23), with updates available via the Purdue Tennis Twitter feed at: www.twitter.com/purduetennis.
CSU Singles Results:
Flight A
Dujovne (PUR) def. Kuelker (CSU), 6-4, 4-6, 6-1
Tries (WMU) def. van der Vloet (CSU), 6-3, 6-3
VanMeter (CSU) def. Hagen (Iowa), WD
Finkenbrink (GB) def. VanMeter (CSU), 6-1, 6-4
Flight B
Johnson (DePaul) def. Shabib (CSU), 5-7, 6-3, 6-2
Ford (CSU) def. Weldon (BU), 1-6, 6-1, 6-3
Brocker (UT) def. Ford (CSU), 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-1
Moe (XU) def. Jonsson (CSU), WD
Flight C
Wareti (UT) def. Jones (CSU), 6-4, 6-4
Marks (CSU) def. Etman (Valpo), 6-2, 6-2
Marks (CSU) def. Sztrejtman (IPFW), 6-2, 6-3
CSU Doubles Results:
Flight A
Shabib/Jonsson (CSU) def. Tenzer/Cox (GB), 8-5
Shabib/Jonsson (CSU) def. Tatarczyk/Kovacs (PUR), WD
Flight B
Kuelker/van der Vloet (CSU) def. Wareti/Cona (UT), 8-2
Kuelker/van der Vloet (CSU) def. Geeraert (WMU)/Wong (BU), 9-7
