CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State men's tennis team will open the 2023 spring campaign this weekend, hitting the road for a trio of matches at Ohio State (Thursday, January 19), Purdue (Friday, January 20) and Michigan (Sunday, January 22).
Tough Opening Stretch
This weekend's opening slate of matches will be one of the toughest stretches for the Vikings in recent history, as two out of Cleveland State's three opponents are ranked in the top-five in the most recent ITA National Rankings. Ohio State is currently ranked #2, while Michigan is currently sitting at the #5 spot.
The 2023 Schedule | Complete Schedule
This weekend's matches will be the first of 26 scheduled matches for the Vikings this spring. Cleveland State's home opener is slated for later this month, as the Vikings will host Xavier and St. Bonaventure in a doubleheader on Saturday, January 28.
The 2023 Roster | Complete Roster
Cleveland State returns six letterwinners for the 2023 spring season, including the senior duo of Kade Mindry and Raul Teichmann. This duo is joined by juniors JuandeDios Abboud, Mikael Erler, Maxime Mareschal-Hay, and Austin Staiger, along with redshirt-freshman Devin Boyer. This group will be joined by a handful of true freshmen in Cole Chappell, Carl Gedlitschka, Alan Matyjas, Ty Rothchild, and Andrew Zimcosky.
Entering The Spring Campaign… | Complete Fall Stats
Junior Mikael Erler owns a team-best 8-4 singles record following the fall season, while freshman Carl Gedlitschka stands at 7-4 on the year. In addition, Kade Mindry and Raul Teichmann are both entering the spring season with six singles wins.
#HLTennis Preseason Poll | Full Release
Earlier this month the Vikings were selected to finish first in the North Division of the Horizon League Preseason Poll, while being tabbed to finish second overall in the Horizon League. This marked the 11th year that the Horizon League has released a preseason tennis poll, with Cleveland State being selected as a top-two team 10 out of the 11 years.
Head Coach Brian Etzkin
The Vikings will be under the direction of 21-year head coach Brian Etzkin. As the all-time winningest coach in program history, Etzkin enters the 2023 spring campaign with 290 career wins. Etzkin is one of the longest tenured coaches in the Horizon League, and is the only men's coach to record 275+ wins at their current school.
