MILWAUKEE, Wis. – Behind a strong singles performance the Cleveland State women's tennis team battled for a hard fought victory Saturday afternoon, capturing a 4-3 decision at Milwaukee. With the win, the Vikings are now 13-9 overall this season and 7-1 in Horizon League action.
Saturday's victory over Milwaukee improves the Vikings to 14-3 in the overall series under head coach Brian Etzkin.
"This was such a great match for us today, and one of the best total team efforts we have had throughout the spring season," associate head coach Frank Polito said. "Everyone fought very hard today throughout the doubles and singles lineup, and we didn't lose focus despite getting off to a rough start."
After dropping the doubles point, the Vikings were forced to pick up wins in four of the six singles matches to clinch Saturday's victory.
Cleveland State's first singles win of the day came from senior Princess Gbadamosi at No. 5 singles, as she evened the match at 1-1 with a quick 6-2, 6-0 decision. The win marked Gbadamosi's 68th singles victory of her career, while it also improved her to 6-2 in league play this season.
Although Milwaukee was able to gain a 2-1 advantage with a win at No. 4 singles, Aleksandra Golawska evened the match once again for the Vikings with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-0 victory at the No. 3 spot. Golawska, who also owns a 6-2 record in league action this season, now stands at 21-4 for her career in regular season Horizon League matches.
The Vikings were then able to take their first lead of the match following a win at No. 2 singles, as Isabella Spindler posted a 7-6 (5), 6-3 victory over the Panthers.
Milwaukee responded with a win at the top of the lineup though, putting the clinching point on court No. 6. After dropping the first set 6-4, Cleveland State's Blanche Lenoan bounced back to pick up a 7-6 (3) victory in the second set to force a third a deciding frame which she won, 6-3. This marked the second league match that the freshman has posted the clinching point for the Vikings, while it also improved Lenoan's record to 6-2 in league action this season.
"Princess set the tone for us early on in singles play and was followed by Aleksandra who beat one of Milwaukee's better players. Isabella played a solid match to pick up her victory while Blanche was able to hang tough and pull out a three-set victory. Now we need to turn our attention to Green Bay and look to close out the regular season with a victory and a share of the regular season crown," Polito said.
Cleveland State will close out the regular season tomorrow, traveling to Green Bay for an 11:00 a.m. EST contest. A win against the Phoenix tomorrow would guarantee Cleveland State at least a share of the Horizon League Regular Season title.
Cleveland State 4, Milwaukee 3
Doubles
1. Straub/Masdevall Masip (UWM) def. Bensimon/Schober (CSU), 7-6 (4)
2. Spindler/Golawska (CSU) def. Marshall/Petrovska (UWM), 6-2
3. Clarke/Zador (UWM) def. Gbadamosi/Lenoan (CSU), 6-3
Singles
1. Labina Petrovska (UWM) def. Victoria Bensimon (CSU), 1-6, 7-5, 6-3
2. Isabella Spindler (CSU) def. Eszter Zador (UWM), 7-6 (5), 6-3
3. Aleksandra Golawska (CSU) def. Berta Masdevall Masip (UWM), 3-6, 6-3, 6-0
4. Alysa Straub (UWM) def. Jana Schober (CSU), 6-0, 6-1
5. Princess Gbadamosi (CSU) def. Hayley Marshall (UWM), 6-2, 6-0
6. Blanche Lenoan (CSU) def. Nicole Clarke (UWM), 4-6, 7-6 (3), 6-3
