CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State women's tennis team capped off its brief three-match homestand with another win Sunday afternoon, as the Vikings earned a 5-2 victory over Detroit Mercy to remain undefeated in Horizon league play this season. With the win, the Vikings now stand at 12-7 overall, and 5-0 against league opponents.
PDF BOX SCORE | Cleveland State 5, Detroit Mercy 2
Quick Hits
· Cleveland State picked up the doubles point for the seventh straight match, and has won the doubles point in all five Horizon league matches so far this season.
· Kateryna Avram notched her team-leading 22nd singles win of the season Sunday afternoon, improving to 15-3 this spring.
· The duo of Kateryna Avram and Lara Prosenjak remained perfect in Horizon League singles play, standing at 5-0 after Sunday's match.
· Sunday's win put the Vikings at 5-0 in #HLWTEN play, marking the third time over the last four years that they have won five straight league matches.
· With the 5-2 victory over Detroit Mercy, the Vikings remained undefeated at home this season, improving to 8-0 at the MMTP.
· Cleveland State now stands at 12-7 overall this year.
The Match
Once again the Vikings were able to get out to the early 1-0 lead after picking up the doubles point, earning wins at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles against the Titans. At the No. 2 spot, Lara Prosenjak and Kateryna Avram cruised to a 6-0 win to improve to 6-1 as a tandem this spring, while Siân Payne and Gaby Schoenberg battled for a 7-6(5) victory to give Cleveland State the first point of the match.
Detroit Mercy was able to even the match with the first singles point of the day, earning a win at the top of the lineup to put the score at 1-1 early on in singles play.
The Vikings responded with three straight singles wins though, beginning with a 6-4, 6-0 victory from Avram at the No. 6 spot to put the Vikings up 2-1.
Cleveland State then gained a 3-1 advantage after Prosenjak picked up a 6-2, 6-4 win at No. 3 singles, marking her 11th singles victory of the spring. The clinching point came on the No. 2 singles court then, as Klara Mrcela earned a hard fought 6-0, 7-5 victory to put Cleveland State up 4-1 as she became the fifth Viking to notch double-digit wins this spring.
Although the Titans were able to pick up another point at No. 5 singles, Cleveland State closed out the match with a win at the No. 4 spot, as Payne earned a 4-6, 6-0, 6-2 three-set victory to give the Vikings the 5-2 match victory.
From The Sidelines
"It was nice to get the doubles point again today, I thought our No. 3 doubles team was mentally focused throughout the tiebreaker, which helped them to get the crucial win for us. I thought Kate set the tone for us in singles again, and Lara quickly followed to extend our advantage. Klara played a great match to clinch the team victory for us, earning her team-leading sixth clinching point of the season. It was nice to see Siân fight back after losing the first set, and then go on to pick up quick wins in the next two sets. We now need to have a good week in practice as we prepare to hit the road for the final roadswing of the regular season next weekend." – head coach Frank Polito
Up Next
· The Vikings will hit the road for the final time during the regular season next weekend, traveling to Northern Kentucky (Saturday, April 13) and Wright State (Sunday, April 14).
The Results
Doubles (2, 1, 3)
1. Apawti/Apawti (UDM) def. Spindler/Mrcela (CSU), 6-4
2. Prosenjak/Avram (CSU) def. Thioux/Torcello (UDM), 6-0
3. Payne/Schoenberg (CSU) def. Mitrakovic/Providokhina (UDM), 7-6(5)
Singles (1, 6, 3, 2, 5, 4)
1. Jasmine Apawti (UDM) def. Isabella Spindler (CSU), 6-1, 6-0
2. Klara Mrcela (CSU) def. Iris Thioux (UDM), 6-0, 7-5
3. Lara Prosenjak (CSU) def. Chelsea Apawti (UDM), 6-2, 6-4
4. Siân Payne (CSU) def. Ksenia Providokhina (UDM), 4-6, 6-0, 6-2
5. Paulina Van Herck (UDM) def. Gaby Schoenberg (CSU), 1-6, 6-3, 6-3
6. Kateryna Avram (CSU) def. Sara Mitrakovic (UDM), 6-4, 6-0