CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State women's tennis team will head south to the state of Texas for its annual Spring Break Trip this season, facing Lamar and Sam Houston State in a pair of dual matches.
Monday, March 13 | @ Lamar | 1:00 p.m. EST
Thompson Family Tennis Center | 211 Redbird Lane | Beaumont, Texas | 77710
Wednesday, March 15 | @ Sam Houston State | 2:00 p.m. EST
Walden Tennis Center | 11800 Walden Rd. | Montgomery, Texas | 77356
Last Time Out…
The Vikings picked up back-to-back wins against Butler (5-2) and St. Bonaventure (7-0), snapping a three-match losing skid to improve to 5-7 on the year. The trio of Princess Gbadamosi, Jana Schober, and Blanche Lenoan went 2-0 in singles action last weekend, while the doubles teams of Isabella Spindler/Princess Gbadamosi and Aleksandra Golawska/Blanche Lenoan also went 2-0 in doubles play.
Vikings On The Top-10 Singles Wins List
Entering next week's matches, the senior duo of Victoria Bensimon and Princess Gbadamosi rank seventh and eighth, respectively, on the CSU Singles Wins list. Bensimon, who has a team-best 7-5 record this spring, has 66 career wins, while Gbadamosi improved to 62 career singles wins after picking up a pair of wins last weekend. Bensimon and Gbadamosi mark the eighth and ninth Vikings all-time to eclipse the 60-win mark.
Closing In On Win #50
Junior Aleksandra Golawska enters the Spring Break trip just six wins shy of marking the 50th singles victory of her career. Golawska, who owns a 10-9 singles record this season, would become the 14th Viking all-time to reach the 50-win milestone. Golawska would also join teammates Victoria Bensimon and Princess Gbadamosi in the exclusive 50-win club.
Gbadamosi Picks Up Singles Play
After posting a 5-9 record during the fall season and the first part of the spring slate, senior Princess Gbadamosi has picked up her singles play over the last few weeks, going 6-2 during the last eight matches. Gbadamosi, who ranks second on the team with 11 singles wins this year, is one of three Vikings to enter the Spring Break trip on a mini two-match winstreak.
Head Coach Brian Etzkin
Brian Etzkin is in his 15th year with the Vikings, owning a 190-182 dual match record. During his tenure, Etzkin has guided Cleveland State to a pair of Horizon League Regular Season titles (2014 & 2016), and three Horizon League Championship Match appearances. With just 10 more dual match victories, Etzkin will become the second active Horizon League women's coach with 200 wins on their career.
Scouting The Cardinals
Lamar currently owns a 5-2 record this Spring, including a perfect 3-0 record when playing at home. Prior to Monday's matchup with the Vikings, the Cardinals will face Abilene Christian in a Southland Conference contest.
This will be just the second meeting between the two teams over the last 14 seasons, with the Cardinals picking up a 5-2 victory in the first matchup during the 2010-11 season.
Scouting The Bearkats
Sam Houston State stands at 4-7 this Spring, and will take on Abilene Christian prior to Wednesday's contest against the Vikings. The Bearkats picked up back-to-back victories to begin the season, and have now won two out of their last three matches heading into the weekend.
This will be the first meeting between the two teams under head coach Brian Etzkin.
