CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State women's tennis team was once again able to use a bit of Banquet Weekend magic, pulling out a 4-3 victory over UIC Sunday afternoon to close out the 2015 regular season. The win, which was Cleveland State's fifth out of its last seven matches, puts the Vikings at 8-13 overall this season and 5-3 in Horizon League play.
Sunday's win over UIC also gives the Vikings the No. 3 seed in the upcoming Horizon League Tournament, which begins on Friday, April 24 in West Lafayette, Ind.
"We once again dug ourselves a hole after doubles play, but the women were able to dig deep and pull out the 4-3 victory today," head coach Brian Etzkin said. "After losing the doubles point, I thought it was key when Victoria and Princess were able to pick up two quick wins to swing the momentum to our side. Ellen stepped up in another big moment for us, and has been playing some great tennis all year long. After dropping the second set, she was able to close out the third set definitively and give us some energy on the other courts."
Despite getting down 1-0 following doubles action, the Vikings were quickly able to gain a 2-1 advantage after the first two singles matches – picking up wins at No. 3 and No. 5 singles. Victoria Bensimon earned a 6-1, 6-1 victory at the No. 3 spot, improving to 19-12 overall this season and 6-2 against league opponents. Princess Gbadamosi followed this up with a 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 5 singles, improving to 16-14 overall this season.
The Flames then evened the match with a win at the top of the singles lineup, but a 7-6 (4), 2-6, 6-1 victory from Ellen Folkers at No. 2 singles once again put the Vikings on top, 3-2. Folkers now has a team-best 21-9 singles record this season and also owns a 6-2 mark in league play.
UIC once again evened the match, this time putting the score at 3-3 following a win at No. 4 singles. The final and deciding match came down to the No. 6 spot, where Cleveland State's Jana Schober was battling UIC's Melika LeBlanc.
Schober was able to come-from-behind to earn a 7-5 victory in the first set, and then battled for a 7-6 (1) victory during the second set to clinch the match for the Vikings.
"Our hats go off to Jana, who came through in one of the bigger moments of the season. She has been grinding a little bit lately, but she never gives up which was evident in her match today. She had to come out of her comfort zone to get the win, and I was very happy to see her close out the match for us," Etzkin said. "We had a great crowd behind us today – with over 180 people watching at one point – and it was definitely a fun way to close out the regular season."
Next up for the Vikings will be the 2015 Horizon League Tournament, with CSU set to face No. 6 Oakland in a first round contest at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, April 24.
Cleveland State 4, UIC 3
Doubles:
- Mebuke/Manole (UIC) def. Folkers/Bensimon (CSU), 6-1
- Altansarnai/Hahn (UIC) def. Golawska/Schober (CSU), 6-3
- Orange/Gbadamosi (CSU) vs. Zuzu/LeBlanc (UIC), 5-2, unf
Singles:
- Keti Mebuke (UIC) def. Mathilde Orange (CSU), 6-3, 7-5
- Ellen Folkers (CSU) def. Jackie Altansarnai (UIC), 7-6 (4), 2-6, 6-1
- Victoria Bensimon (CSU) def. Oana Manole (UIC), 6-1, 6-1
- Ann-Sophie Hahn (UIC) def. Aleksandra Golawska (UIC), 6-3, 4-6, 6-4
- Princess Gbadamosi (CSU) def. Bianca Zuzu (UIC), 6-3, 6-1
- Jana Schober (CSU) def. Melika LeBlanc (UIC), 7-5, 7-6 (1)
Order of Finish: Doubles (1, 2) – Singles (3, 5, 1, 2, 4, 6)
