April 21, 2013
Contact: Renee Adam
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"Today was a very exciting match, you really didn't know how it was going to go until the very end. Things weren't looking very good for us when we got down early, but we were able to steal a victory with some strong singles play," head coach Brian Etzkin said. "I definitely give Wright State credit on playing aggressive doubles and really giving us all we could handle. This was the first time that we lost the doubles point during league play, but I think we rebounded well and pulled out some tough singles wins."
After getting behind 1-0 after dropping the doubles point, the Vikings stormed back to win four out of the six singles matches. Niklas Jonsson quickly evened the score with a 6-3, 6-0 victory at No. 4 singles, putting his league singles record at a perfect 4-0 this season. Jorg van der Vloet was then able to give the Vikings a 2-1 advantage following a 6-2, 6-4 victory at No. 1 singles.
Wright State responded with two victories at No. 5 and No. 6 singles, regaining the advantage at 3-2 with the No. 2 and No. 3 singles matches left on the courts. Matt Kuelker then battled for a three-set victory at No. 2 singles, marking his team-leading 18th win of the year and tying the score at 3-3 heading into the final match. After dropping his first set, Ali Shabib stormed back to win the next two sets, clinching the match for the Vikings and finishing the regular season with a perfect 6-0 mark in Horizon League action.
"Niklas was able to get us a quick point with his win at No. 4 singles, and then Jorg was able to quickly put us up 2-1 with his victory at No. 1 singles. After losing at the bottom of the lineup and getting behind again, Matt Kuelker pushed ahead in his match to even the score and then Ali came storming back from down 3-5 in the third set to win his match. It all came down to a matter of will today, and Matt Kuelker and Ali refused to get off the court until we had the win. Now we need to have a sharp week of practice and prepare for the league tournament," Etzkin said.
The Vikings will begin play in the Horizon League Tournament on Saturday, April 27 in a 10:30 a.m. semifinal match. CSU will take on the winner of the No. 3/No. 6 first round contest which is set for a 10:00 a.m. start on Friday, April 26.
Cleveland State 4, Wright State 3
Doubles:
1. Hayden Joblin/Jamison Clark (WSU) def. JONSSON, Niklas/SHABIB, Ali (CSU) 8-6
2. Michal Lyzwa/Lauri Makikalli (WSU) def. KUELKER, Matt/MARKS, Nolan (CSU) 8-2
3. Evan Neuman/Ricardo Pineda (WSU) vs. VAN DER VLOET, Jorg/VANMETER, Joe (CSU) 6-5, unfinished
Singles:
1. van der Vloet, Jorg (CSU) def. Hayden Joblin (WSU) 6-2, 6-4
2. Kuelker, Matt (CSU) def. Lauri Makikalli (WSU) 7-6 (6), 2-6, 6-3
3. Shabib, Ali (CSU) def. Michal Lyzwa (WSU) 5-7, 7-5, 7-5
4. Jonsson, Niklas (CSU) def. Ricardo Pineda (WSU) 6-3, 6-0
5. Jamison Clark (WSU) def. Marks, Nolan (CSU) 6-3, 2-6, 6-2
6. Dan Hyman (WSU) def. Ford, Matt (CSU) 7-5, 6-4
