CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State women's tennis team wrapped up regular season play Saturday, dropping a heartbreaking 4-3 decision to UIC. The Vikings finished the regular season with a 15-8 overall record and an 8-1 mark in league play, finishing as Co-Regular Season Champions.
PDF BOX SCORE | UIC 4, Cleveland State 3
Quick Hits
· Cleveland State finished the regular season with an 8-1 record in Horizon League play, tying the program record for league wins in a season.
· Saturday's match marked the first loss at home for the Vikings this season, as they finished the year with a 9-1 record in the Medical Mutual Tennis Pavilion.
· Kateryna Avram picked up her team-leading 26th singles win of the year against UIC, and also improved to 9-0 against league opponents this season.
· With the 6-2 win at No. 3 doubles, Siân Payne and Gaby Schoenberg finished the regular season with an 8-0 record against league opponents.
The Match
For the ninth time in Horizon League play this season, the Vikings were able to earn the early 1-0 lead, picking up the doubles point with wins at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles. Kateryna Avram and Lara Prosenjak earned a 6-3 victory at the No. 2 spot, while Siân Payne and Gaby Schoenberg posted a 6-2 win at No. 3 doubles.
Despite getting out to the early lead, the Vikings dropped the first two singles points, as UIC picked up wins at No. 3 and No. 2 singles to earn a 2-1 advantage.
The Vikings then responded with a pair of wins at the bottom of the singles lineup, as Schoenberg earned a 6-2, 7-5 win at No. 5 singles and Avram posted a 6-2, 6-3 win at the No. 6 spot, giving the Vikings a 3-2 lead.
The final two singles matches on the courts were at No. 1 and No. 4 singles then, as the Vikings forced third sets on both courts after bouncing back to pick up second-set wins after dropping the opening frame. Although Cleveland State fought back to force third sets on both courts, the Vikings came up just short, as UIC claimed the final two singles points to clinch the 4-3 team match.
From The Sidelines
"This was a tough match for us today, we fought hard until the very end, but came up a bit short. I thought we played some great doubles at the 2 and 3 spots to get the early advantage, and despite going down 2-1 at the start of singles, we fought our way back and stayed in the match. This was a great battle between two good teams, and I'm proud of how much fight we left on the court. Now we need to focus on next week's tournament and prepare ourselves for another tough fight." – head coach Frank Polito
Up Next
· Cleveland State will enter next week's Horizon League Tournament as the No. 2 seed, and will begin play with a semifinal match on Saturday, April 27.
The Results
Doubles (1, 2, 3)
1. Colic/Prochazkova (UIC) def. Mrcela/Spindler (CSU), 6-3
2. Avram/Prosenjak (CSU) def. Le Comber/Bihel (UIC), 6-3
3. Payne/Schoenberg (CSU) def. Gulin/Seifert (UIC), 6-2
Singles (3, 2, 5, 6, 1, 4)
1. Lejla Colic (UIC) def. Isabella Spindler (CSU), 6-2, 2-6, 6-3
2. Karyna Bihel (UIC) def. Klara Mrcela (CSU), 6-2, 6-2
3. Lucie Prochazkova (UIC) def. Lara Prosenjak (CSU), 6-0, 6-2
4. Georgie Sanders (UIC) def. Siân Payne (CSU), 6-0, 4-6, 6-3
5. Gaby Schoenberg (CSU) def. Rachel Le Comber (UIC), 6-2, 7-5
6. Kateryna Avram (CSU) def. Viktoria Seifert (UIC), 6-2, 6-3