WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Cleveland State men's tennis team kicked off the 2014 fall season Friday, participating in the Purdue Fall Invitational. The Vikings were led by senior Ali Shabib on the first day of the invitational, as he went 3-0 in his singles and doubles matches.
"This was a long day for us today, it was our first time playing competitively this season and I think we are starting to get back into the swing of things," associate head coach Frank Polito said. "Ali played some great singles today, and that translated into some great doubles play with his teammate, Colton. Jorg and Nolan also had a great showing in doubles action today, hopefully both teams can carry this momentum into tomorrow's matches. We lost some tough three-setters during singles play, but I think we were able to learn during every match, and will continue to move forward and continue to improve."
Senior Ali Shabib and newcomer Colton Buffington went 2-0 in the Doubles A Flight Friday, picking up an 8-2 victory against a duo from Marquette and an 8-5 win against a Purdue tandem. Shabib and Buffington will now face a Tennessee Tech duo in the semifinals tomorrow.
The senior duo of Nolan Marks and Jorg van der Vloet also went undefeated in doubles play on the first day of the Purdue Invitational, picking up a pair of wins in the Doubles C Flight. Marks and van der Vloet first picked up an 8-0 victory over Case Western and followed it up with an 8-4 victory over a Butler duo. They will now face a familiar opponent in Valparaiso in a semifinal match tomorrow.
Shabib picked up Cleveland State's lone singles win on the opening day of the Purdue Invitational, earning a 6-2, 6-4 victory over IUPUI's Jac Newis. Shabib will now face Andrew Cahn of Western Michigan in the quarterfinals tomorrow morning.
Action at the Purdue Invitational will continue tomorrow, with two rounds of singles and one round of doubles beginning at 8:00 a.m. Fans are encouraged to follow Purdue Men's Tennis on Twitter (@PurdueMT) for match-by-match updates throughout the day.
Singles Results
Flight A
CJ Krimball (CWRU) def. Mirko Radosevic (CSU), 6-3, 6-3
Flight B
Ali Shabib (CSU) def. Jac Newis (IUPUI), 6-2, 6-4
Hanayama (PUR) def. Jorg van der Vloet (CSU), 7-5, 7-5
Jefta Kecic (WMU) def. Joe VanMeter (CSU), 7-5, 6-7, 6-1
Flight C
Tim Corwin (DEP) def. Manuel Bellutti (CSU), 7-5, 7-6 (5)
Nicky Wong (UT) def. Colton Buffington (CSU), 6-4, 3-6, 7-5
Flight D
Andre Romanello (MARQ) def. Nolan Marks (CSU), 6-3, 6-7 (2), 6-4
Flight E
Michael Savaglio (VALPO) def. Kevin Goth (CSU), 6-1, 6-2
Doubles Results
Flight A
Shabib/Buffington (CSU) def. Tehrani/Stearns (MU), 8-2
Shabib/Buffington (CSU) def. Medinilla/Silva (PUR), 8-5
Flight B
Meza/Sisko (UT) def. VanMeter/Radosevic (CSU), 8-7 (6)
Flight C
Moe/Luetscharger (IUPUI) def. Bellutti/Goth (CSU), 8-7 (6)
Sklyr/Christian (MU) def. Bellutti/Goth (CSU), 8-5
Marks/van der Vloet (CSU) def. Dughi/Simhardi (CWRU), 8-0
Marks/van der Vloet (CSU) def. Marx/Woldmoe (BU), 8-4
