PLAIN CITY, Ohio – The Cleveland State men's tennis team got back on the winning track Tuesday evening, picking up a 5-2 non-league victory against Xavier. With the win the Vikings are now 13-6 this spring.

"This was a good bounceback win for us today, it's good for us to get the momentum going in a positive direction heading into Saturday's match at Green Bay. This was another classic Xavier-Cleveland State match, and it was exciting for everyone to witness," head coach Brian Etzkin said. "In singles we were able to pick up some quick points at the No. 3 and No. 4 spots, giving us some momentum in singles play. We then had four three-set matches going on at once, which made things very exciting. We have been really strong lately in winning our three-set matches and that streak continued today."

Despite dropping the doubles point, the Vikings were able to pick up five singles wins to capture the victory.

Cleveland State's first singles win came from Manuel Bellutti at No. 3 singles, as he captured his team-leading 21^st victory of the season in a 7-5, 6-4 decision. The win was Bellutti's eighth straight singles win and his 11^th out of his last 12^th matches.

Ali Shabib then put the Vikings up 2-1 with a win at No. 4 singles, picking up a 6-4, 7-6 (4) victory.

Xavier was then able to even the match at 2-2 with a win at No. 1 singles, before CSU rattled off three straight singles wins to clinch the match, including a win at the No. 2 spot from Joe VanMeter – his 20^th singles win of the season. VanMeter posted a 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2 victory to become the second Viking with 20 wins this season.

The clinching point came from Colton Buffington at No. 6 singles then, as he captured a 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 victory.

 "Colton was able to weather the storm and ride the wave to come up with a victory, clinching the match at his position," sophomore Andre Mick said.

CSU's final singles win came from Mirko Radosevic at No. 5 singles, as he battled for a 4-6, 7-6 (3), 6-4 win.

Cleveland State's No. 1 doubles team of Ali Shabib and Nolan Marks also picked up a win on the day, earning a 6-3 victory at the top of the lineup. Shabib and Marks are now 10-3 this season, and have won five straight doubles matches.

"Joe had a great comeback win for us today, he played some solid tennis down the stretch to get his win. Colton got the clincher for us today and it was good to see him get the win and it was definitely well earned. Mirko also had a good win for us at the end of the contest, staying strong throughout his entire match," Etzkin said. "Our No. 1 doubles team played good doubles for us despite dropping the doubles point. They are playing some good, consistent tennis right now and that is exciting to see."

The Vikings will return to Horizon League action this weekend, traveling to Green Bay for a 3:00 p.m. EST contest on Saturday, April 11.

Cleveland State 5, Xavier 2

Doubles:

1. Shabib/Marks (CSU) def. Bishop/Schneider (XU), 6-3
2. Moe/LaFavre (XU) def. Radosevic/Bellutti (CSU), 6-3
3. Stefani/Araujo (XU) def. Buffington/van der Vloet (CSU), 6-3

Singles:

1. Jeremy Schneider (XU) def. Jorg van der Vloet (CSU), 7-6 (5), 2-6, 6-3
2. Joe VanMeter (CSU) def. Matt Bishop (XU), 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2
3. Manuel Bellutti (CSU) def. Arthur Stefani (XU), 7-5, 6-4
4. Ali Shabib (CSU) def. Michael Moe (XU), 6-4, 7-6 (4)
5. Mirko Radosevic (CSU) def. G. Chaves Araujo (XU), 4-6, 7-6 (3), 6-4
6. Colton Buffington (CSU) def. Connor LaFavre (XU), 6-2, 3-6, 6-4

Order of Finish: Doubles (2, 1, 3) – Singles (3, 4, 1, 2, 6, 5)