MUNCIE, Ind. – The Cleveland State men's tennis team extended its winstreak to three matches Sunday afternoon, picking up a 6-1 victory at Ball State. The Vikings now stand at 8-4 on the season.
"Going into the match, we were once again the underdog on paper, but we were able to fight and compete in front of a rowdy Ball State crowd for the win," head coach Brian Etzkin said. "We set the stage with our doubles play, as we took care of business at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles giving us the early lead for the second match in a row."
Cleveland State was able to pick up the doubles point for the third straight match Sunday, picking up wins at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles. At the No. 2 spot, Colton Buffington and Kevin Goth earned a 6-3 victory, while Mirko Radosevic and Benjamin Slade cruised to a 6-1 win at No. 3 doubles.
"Our Australian crew then gave us our first two singles wins at the bottom of the lineup, before Joe out-battled his opponent for the clinching point," Etzkin said. "Kevin and Mirko then closed out the match for us, playing a pair of tough three-set matches. Throughout the weekend the team has definitely matured in the two wins, and they continue to move in the right direction."
After Ball State was able to even the score at 1-1 following a win at the top of the singles lineup, Cleveland State swept the final five singles matches, picking up the 6-1 victory.
Slade won his team-best fourth straight singles match Sunday, picking up a 6-4, 6-1 victory at No. 5 singles, giving the Vikings a 2-1 advantage in the match. Andre Mick then put Cleveland State up 3-1 with a win at No. 6 singles, earning a 6-4, 6-3 victory – his 12th singles win of the year.
Joe VanMeter then clinched the match for the Vikings, posting a 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 win at No. 2 singles. The win gave VanMeter his team-best eighth singles win of the spring, while it also gave him 69 singles wins for his career. He is now just one win shy of becoming the seventh Viking all-time to reach 70 career wins.
The next win for the Vikings came at No. 4 singles, as Goth became the fifth Viking with double-digit wins this year, posting a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win to put the Vikings up 5-1.
Radosevic then posted Cleveland State's final win on the day, improving to 13-9 this season with a 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-4 win at No. 3 singles.
Cleveland State will return to action next weekend, hosting Western Michigan and Marietta in a doubleheader on Friday, March 4. Action will begin at 1:00 p.m., with both matches taking place at Paramount Tennis Club.
Cleveland State 6, Ball State 1
Doubles:
1. Andersen/Stutz (BSU) def. Mick/VanMeter (CSU), 6-2
2. Buffington/Goth (CSU) def. Andersen/Carney (BSU), 6-3
3. Radosevic/Slade (CSU) def. Helm/Downs (BSU), 6-1
Singles:
1. Lucas Andersen (BSU) def. Colton Buffington (CSU), 6-4, 6-2
2. Joe VanMeter (CSU) def. Andrew Stutz (BSU), 6-4, 5-7, 6-4
3. Mirko Radosevic (CSU) def. Nemanja Guzina (BSU), 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-4
4. Kevin Goth (CSU) def. Conner Andersen (BSU), 6-3, 4-6, 6-4
5. Benjamin Slade (CSU) def. Marko Guzina (BSU), 6-4, 6-1
6. Andre Mick (CSU) def. Jan Jirus (BSU), 6-4, 6-3
