CHAGRIN FALLS, Ohio – The Cleveland State men's tennis team kept its Horizon League record perfect, and extended its winstreak to four straight Friday evening, as the Vikings defeated Detroit, 5-2. Cleveland State is now 9-5 overall this season and 2-0 in league action.
"Despite putting ourselves in a hole after doubles play, I thought we were able to fight hard and focus on what we needed to do during singles action to come back and pick up the victory," head coach Brian Etzkin said. "Detroit really brought it today, and despite the match being 5-2, it was a very close 5-2 match. We were able to win all three three-set matches which was the key to our victory. The team never gave up today and fought hard to swing the momentum back to our favor after being down. I think these matches are definitely getting us prepared for what is to come down the stretch, and will hopefully make it easier for us to accomplish our goals."
Despite dropping the doubles point early on, the Vikings were able to swing the momentum and pick up five victories during singles action.
Cleveland State's first victory came from Mirko Radosevic at the No. 5 spot, as he was able to quickly post a 6-3, 6-0 win, improving to 8-6 this spring. Detroit was then able to regain a 2-1 advantage with a victory at No. 1 singles, but Jorg van der Vloet quickly responded with a 3-6, 6-0, 6-2 win at the No. 2 spot to even the match at 2-2. van der Vloet now has a team-best 11-3 singles record this spring.
Ali Shabib then gave CSU a 3-2 lead with a 6-1, 7-5 victory at No. 4 singles, while Manuel Bellutti posted a 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 win at the No. 3 spot to clinch the match for the Vikings. Shabib now stands at 13-12 overall this season, while Bellutti has a team-leading 17-6 singles mark.
The final match on the court came down to CSU's Colton Buffington, as he was able to capture a 6-2, 6-7 (6), 6-3 victory at No. 6 singles.
"This was a good league win for us today, it's always a good thing when you can pick up victories against league opponents. This is another step towards our goal of winning the league this season and making it to the NCAA Tournament. I am looking forward to what is ahead for us this season," Mirko Radosevic said.
The Vikings will continue their three-match homestand on Sunday (March 29), hosting Case Western Reserve (10:00 a.m.) and Oberlin (6:00 p.m.). Both matches will take place at Paramount Tennis Club in Westlake, Ohio.
Cleveland State 5, Detroit 2
Doubles:
- Shabib/Marks (CSU) def. Joshi/Kadyrov (DET), 6-4
- Ponton/Koscielski (DET) def. Bellutti/Radosevic (CSU), 6-2
- Orantes/Conley (DET) def. VanMeter/Buffington (CSU), 7-6 (5)
Singles:
- Patryk Koscielski (DET) def. Joe VanMeter (CSU), 6-4, 6-4
- Jorg van der Vloet (CSU) def. Nathan Ponton (DET), 3-6, 6-0, 6-2
- Manuel Bellutti (CSU) def. Rafael Orantes (DET), 2-6, 6-2, 6-4
- Ali Shabib (CSU) def. Kacper Stelmaszak (DET), 6-1, 7-5
- Mirko Radosevic (CSU) def. Chance Conley (DET), 6-3, 6-0
- Colton Buffington (CSU) def. Ismail Kadyrov (DET), 6-2, 6-7 (6), 6-3
Order of Finish:
Doubles: 2, 1, 3
Singles: 6, 1, 2, 4, 3, 5
