Vikings Return Home To Host A Trio Of Matches This Weekend

Posted: Mar 26, 2015

CLEVELAND, Ohio – After six weeks on the road, the Cleveland State men's tennis team will finally return home this weekend, hosting Detroit, Case Western, and Oberlin. The Vikings will open the weekend with a 7:00 p.m. match against Detroit on Friday, March 27 at Chagrin Valley Athletic Club, and will then host Case Western (10:00 a.m.) and Oberlin (6:00 p.m.) on Sunday, March 29 at Paramount Tennis Club.

Pack The House | Friday's match against Detroit will serve as CSU's annual 'Pack The House' night, with a Cleveland State Tennis Paddle Ball giveaway for the first 50 fans.

Follow The Action| Fans that are unable to attend Sunday's matches will be able to follow the action online, with live results available on the men's tennis schedule page at CSUVikings.com

Bellutti Named Player Of The Week
Earlier this week Manuel Bellutti picked up the first weekly accolade of his Viking career, as he was named the Horizon League Player of the Week. Bellutti led the Vikings to a pair of victories against Wright State and IPFW, going 2-0 in singles action and 2-0 in doubles play. For the complete release click on the link below:

BELLUTTI NAMED HORIZON LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Horizon League Play
Last Saturday, Cleveland State opened Horizon League play with a 5-2 victory at Wright State, marking the 10^th straight season that the Vikings have opened their league slate with a win. A win against Detroit on Friday would mark the seventh time under head coach Brian Etzkin that CSU has been 2-0 to start the Horizon League portion of its schedule.

In The Record Book
After picking up a pair of victories last weekend, senior Ali Shabib ranks eighth on the CSU singles wins list with 56 victories. Shabib needs just two more wins to move into seventh place on the list, and just four more wins to become the seventh Viking all-time with 60 career wins.

Senior Jorg van der Vloet also improved his career singles win total last weekend and now ranks ninth with 55 career victories. van der Vloet is one of 11 Vikings to notch 50 career wins all-time.

Bellutti Closing In On 50 Wins
Playing in just his second season as a Viking, senior Manuel Bellutti is closing in on 50 career singles wins, entering the weekend with a 41-15 record on his career. Bellutti, who has a team-best 16-6 singles record this season, would become the 12^th Viking all-time to notch 50 career singles wins and the fourth to do so this season. As a junior Bellutti posted a 25-9 singles record - a mark that ranks fifth on the CSU single-season wins list – while he is closing in on another 20-win season this year.

Scouting the Titans
Detroit enters Friday's contest with a 4-9 overall record, and has yet to pick up a win on the road this season. The Titans opened their Horizon League season against Green Bay last month, falling to the Phoenix, 5-2. Patryk Koscielski has been Detroit's top singles player this year, while they have played a number of different doubles teams at the No. 1 spot.

Under head coach Brian Etzkin the Vikings own a perfect 8-0 record against the Titans.

Scouting the Spartans
Case Western Reserve enters the weekend with a 10-7 overall record, and will face Ohio Wesleyan, John Carroll, and Stevens prior to Sunday's match against the Vikings. Cleveland State will be CWRU's lone Division I opponent this season.

The Vikings are 4-0 against Case Western over the past 12 seasons.

Scouting the Yeomen
Oberlin enters the weekend with a 6-4 record this spring and will face Wooster and Stevens prior to Sunday's contest against the Vikings. Cleveland State will be Oberlin's lone Division I opponent this season.

This will be just the second between the two teams under head coach Brian Etzkin, with the Vikings picking up a 7-0 victory last season.

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Men's Tennis

Vikings Return Home To Host A Trio Of Matches This Weekend