WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Cleveland State men's tennis team captured its sixth Horizon League Tournament title in program history Sunday, earning a 4-2 victory over top-seeded Detroit Mercy in the championship match.
Cleveland State vs. Detroit Mercy PDF Box Score | #HLMTEN Tournament Photo Gallery
From The Sidelines
"This was such a great team win today, it has been five years since we were last champions, so this is such a sweet title for the program. This is a great team and a great lineup, and hopefully this is the start of great things to come in Cleveland State tennis. Overall, this was a great collegiate match, and Detroit Mercy put up a great fight, and they definitely deserve congratulations on their season."
Match Notes
· 2018 Record: 17-10
· The Vikings captured their sixth Horizon League Tournament title in program history, and their first since 2013.
· This marked Cleveland State's fourth time playing as the No. 2 seed in the #HLMTEN Tournament, and the second time that the Vikings captured the crown playing as the No. 2 seed (2013).
· The Vikings were playing in their ninth Horizon League Championship match, and were making their second straight #HLMTEN Championship appearance.
· Cleveland State now stands at 26-10 in Horizon League Tournament play over the last 16 seasons.
· Nico Mostardi and Matthew Terry picked up their 28th singles wins of the season Sunday, moving into a tie for second place on the CSU Single-Season Wins List.
· With his win at No. 4 singles, Benjamin Slade finished the season undefeated against Horizon League opponents (8-0) and picked up his 60th career victory moving into a tie for ninth place on the CSU Singles Wins List.
The Points
· Cleveland State picked up the early doubles point Sunday, earning a 6-4 win from William Malm and Luke Phillips at No. 2 singles and a 6-2 win from Mirko Radosevic and Matthew Terry at the No. 3 spot.
"The doubles point set the tone for us today, we were able to get the early point and take the momentum into singles play. Detroit's No. 2 team had been undefeated all season, but William and Luke were able to turn their match around today, and I thought if we could turn that match around we could turn the entire point around today. Mirko and Matt haven't played a whole lot together this season, but they managed to come up big today and help give us the early lead." – Head coach Brian Etzkin
· Nico Mostardi put the Vikings up 2-0 with a straight-set win at No. 1 singles, earning a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Artem Vasheshnikov. Mostardi picked up his eighth victory out of his last nine matches, and improved to a team-best 28-7 this season. Mostardi went 2-0 during #HLMTEN play at the top of the singles lineup for the Vikings.
"Although we got off to a slow start in singles, Nico was able to rally back in his No. 1 singles match and pick up a tight first set and then he finished his opponent off in the second set to really give us some energy and give us a 2-0 lead. Nico was able to turn his match around from the regular season, and really showed some great fight and determination on the court today." – Head Coach Brian Etzkin
· After Detroit Mercy was able to pick up the next two points to even the match, Benjamin Slade stormed back to put the Vikings up 3-2 with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 victory at No. 4 singles. With the win, Slade improved to 24-12 overall this season and a team-best 18-6 this spring, while picking up his sixth straight victory.
"Despite losing the first set, Ben came back to win the second set and there was no stopping him after that. He has done an unbelievable job in singles throughout the season, and he really came through when we needed him today." – Head coach Brian Etzkin
· Cleveland State's clinching point came from Matthew Terry at No. 2 singles, as he notched a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Nathan Ponton. Terry finished #HLMTEN play with a perfect 2-0 record, and improved to 28-11 on the season.
"Matt had to battle through a lot of pressure and adversity in his match today, and as a freshman, that is a hard thing to do. He was able to battle back in his first set and then hold off his opponent in the second set to get the clinching point for us today, which was one of the best moments of the season for him." – Head coach Brian Etzkin
NCAA Selection Show
· The NCAA Selection Show will take place at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 1, with a live stream available on NCAA.com.
The Results
Doubles
1. Slade/Mostardi (CSU) vs. Sirous/Vasheshnikov (UDM), 5-3, unf.
2. Malm/Phillips (CSU) def. Soskic/Ponton (UDM), 6-4
3. Radosevic/Terry (CSU) def. Motuzas/Arce (UDM), 6-2
Singles
1. Nico Mostardi (CSU) def. Artem Vasheshnikov (UDM), 6-3, 6-3
2. Matthew Terry (CSU) def. Nathan Ponton (UDM), 6-4, 6-4
3. Luka Soskic (UDM) def. Luke Phillips (CSU), 6-4, 6-3
4. Benjamin Slade (CSU) def. Jenya Sirous (UDM), 4-6, 6-3, 6-0
5. Gabriel Evtimov (CSU) vs. Gvidas Motuzas (UDM), 1-6, 6-4, 2-3, unf.
6. Alvaro Arce (UDM) def. Mirko Radosevic (CSU), 6-4, 6-3
