CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State men's tennis team remained perfect in Horizon League play Saturday afternoon, picking up a 6-1 victory over Youngstown State.
Cleveland State vs. Youngstown State PDF Box Score
From The Sidelines
"I thought this was a confidence building win for us today, with bumps and bruises we were able to beat a good team in Youngstown State. Doubles set the tone for us today, and we were able to carry that momentum onto the singles courts. I thought we were really focused today and our mental toughness was good, which helped us pick up our win today. Nico has been giving a really good mental effort throughout all of his matches lately, and Jack stepped into the lineup in singles and doubles, winning both to help us get the victory today." – Head coach Brian Etzkin
Match Notes
· 2018 Record: 11-8, 2-0 HL
· The Vikings are 2-0 to start #HLMTEN play for the eighth time over the last 16 seasons, while they are perfect against league opponents in the MMTP this season.
· For the season, Cleveland State stands at 9-1 when playing at the Medical Mutual Tennis Pavilion.
· With his win at No. 4 singles, Benjamin Slade is now just four wins shy of earning a spot on the top-10 CSU Singles Wins List, finishing the match with 54 career singles wins.
· Cleveland State now owns an 18-7 advantage in the overall series against YSU.
The Points
· Cleveland State was able to get out to the early 1-0 advantage after picking up the doubles point, earning a 6-2 win from Luke Phillips and William Malm at No. 2 doubles and a 6-0 victory from Matthew Terry and Jack Santilli at the No. 3 spot.
· Benjamin Slade picked up the first singles point of the day, earning a 6-2, 6-1 win at No. 4 singles for his 18th win of the year. Slade now owns a team-best 12-5 record this spring.
· Nico Mostardi picked up Cleveland State's next singles point, earning a 6-4, 6-1 win at the top of the lineup. Mostardi is now 22-6 overall this season and 10-2 this spring – with all 12 matches during dual match play coming at No. 1 singles.
· The clinching point came from Luke Phillips at No. 3 singles, as he notched a 6-2, 6-3 victory to improve to 21-10 this year. Phillips owns an 11-6 record this spring, including a 5-2 mark when playing at the No. 3 spot.
· Matthew Terry improved to 22-9 on the year, after battling for a 7-6 (4), 1-6, 1-0(3) victory at No. 2 singles. Terry is now 10-6 this spring, one of four Vikings to reach double-digit singles wins during dual match play.
· The final singles point came from Jack Santilli at the No. 6 spot, as he earned a 2-6, 7-6 (5), 1-0(3) victory to improve to 8-9 overall this season and 4-3 this spring.
Up Next
· Cleveland State will take a break from Horizon League play tomorrow (Sunday, April 1), traveling to No. 11 Michigan for a 5:00 p.m. contest.
The Results
Doubles
1. Mostardi/Slade (CSU) vs. Garretto/Vardakis (YSU), 3-4, unf.
2. Phillips/Malm (CSU) def. Veremeichuk/Dahan (YSU), 6-2
3. Terry/Santilli (CSU) def. Kritzinger/De Negri (YSU), 6-0
Singles
1. Nico Mostardi (CSU) def. Danylo Veremeichuk (YSU), 6-4, 6-1
2. Matthew Terry (CSU) def. Joao Garretto (YSU), 7-6(4), 1-6, 1-0(3)
3. Luke Phillips (CSU) def. Vasileios Vardakis (YSU), 6-2, 6-3
4. Benjamin Slade (CSU) def. Matthew Kritzinger (YSU), 6-2, 6-1
5. Yossi Dahan (YSU) def. Gabriel Evtimov (CSU), 6-1, 6-3
6. Jack Santilli (CSU) def. Luke Purser (YSU), 2-6, 7-6(4), 1-0(5)