GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Cleveland State men's tennis team began Horizon League play Sunday afternoon, picking up a 7-0 victory at Green Bay in its first of six #HLMTEN regular season matches. With the win, the Vikings improve to 11-7 overall this spring.
PDF BOX SCORE | Cleveland State 7, Green Bay 0
Quick Hits
· Sunday's 7-0 victory at Green Bay marked the third straight year that the Vikings have been victorious in their #HLMTEN opener, and the 13th time under head coach Brian Etzkin.
· With the sweep of the Phoenix, head coach Brian Etzkin now has 246 career wins with the men's team, just four wins shy of notching 250 career victories.
· With his 7-6(4), 6-4 win at No. 3 singles, Luke Phillips remained perfect in #HLMTEN regular season play and now owns an 8-0 record on his career.
· Benjamin Slade battled for a 6-7(7), 6-3, 1-0(9) victory at the No. 4 spot against the Phoenix, putting him at 8-0 in #HLMTEN regular season matches over the last two years, and moving him into a tie for sixth place on the CSU Singles Wins List with 73 career victories.
· Matthew Terry is now just four wins shy of recording his 50th career singles victory after posting a 6-1, 6-3 win at No. 2 singles against Green Bay.
· Clark Bilinovich picked up his team-leading 22nd singles victory of the year, earning a 6-2, 6-1 win at No. 5 singles.
· For the third straight match the Vikings picked up the early doubles point, including a 7-6(3) win at No. 1 doubles from Nico Mostardi and Benjamin Slade who have a team-best 14-6 record this year.
· With the win, the duo is now tied for eighth on the CSU Team Doubles Wins List with 22 career victories, while Benjamin Slade is in sole possession of eighth place on the CSU Individual Doubles Wins List with 64 career wins.
From The Sidelines
"The doubles point got us off to a good start today, and after splitting the bottom two matches it came down to a tiebreaker at No. 1 doubles for the early advantage. I thought Nico played some solid tennis at the top of the doubles lineup for us, while Ben's volleys were excellent and he was able to finish some points with precision volleys to give us the early lead after clinching the doubles point."
"We had momentum on our side to begin singles after winning five first sets, and then we were able to withstand a Green Bay push late in singles action, as we got some quick points at the top of the lineup before battling to close out the rest of the matches. I thought we played with some good energy today, and played hard from start to finish in order to beat a quality team in Green Bay." – head coach Brian Etzkin
"This was a good way to start league play today, and to be able to step into the singles lineup and help the team was great. I didn't play my best tennis, but I battled through some adversity and took care of business on the court to close out my match and help lead the team to victory." – senior William Malm
Up Next
· The Vikings will continue Horizon League play next weekend, facing Youngstown State in Streetsboro, Ohio on Saturday, March 30.
The Results
Doubles (3, 2, 1)
1. Mostardi/Slade (CSU) def. McDowall/Ling (GB), 7-6(3)
2. Terry/Phillips (CSU) def. Leto/Wadhwa (GB), 6-3
3. Croxford/Napier (GB) def. Bilinovich/Malm (CSU), 6-4
Singles (2, 1, 5, 6, 3, 4)
1. Nico Mostardi (CSU) def. James Ling (GB), 6-2, 6-2
2. Matthew Terry (CSU) def. Charlie Croxford (GB), 6-1, 6-3
3. Luke Phillips (CSU) def. Miles McDowall (GB), 7-6(4), 6-4
4. Benjamin Slade (CSU) def. Lachlan Napier (GB), 6-7(7), 6-3, 1-0(9)
5. Clark Bilinovich (CSU) def. Ivan Radomirovic (GB), 6-2, 6-1
6. William Malm (CSU) def. Tony Leto (GB), 6-4, 6-4