CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State women's tennis team extended its win streak to six straight matches Saturday afternoon, picking up a hard fought 5-2 victory over Northern Kentucky. With the win, the Vikings are now 7-9 overall this season and 5-4 in Horizon League play.

"This was a great battle today, credit to both teams for competing hard until the very end," head coach Frank Polito said. "I thought we played really well in doubles, with the No. 3 team setting the tone with a quick win. Our No. 1 and No. 2 teams then continued this momentum, with No. 2 doubles clinching the point for us and No. 1 doubles playing a solid match even though they weren't able to finish."

For the sixth straight match the Vikings were able to pick up the early doubles point, getting wins at the No. 2 and No. 3 spots to earn the 1-0 advantage.

Bethany Yauch and Gaby Schoenberg picked up a 6-0 win at No. 3 doubles, while Kateryna Avram and Blanche Lenoan posted a 6-3 win at the No. 2 spot to clinch the point. With their win at No. 2 doubles, Avram and Lenoan moved into a tie for seventh place on the CSU Team Doubles Wins List with 22 career victories, while they also improved to 12-4 this season.

Miruna Vasilescu picked up the first singles point of the day for the Vikings, earning a 6-4, 6-1 win at the top of the lineup to improve to 14-2 overall this season. Vasilescu also remained perfect in Horizon League play with Saturday's win, as she now owns a 9-0 record against league opponents.

Lenoan quickly followed with a win at No. 2 singles then, giving the Vikings a 3-0 advantage with a 6-3, 6-1 victory. The win marked Lenoan's eighth straight victory, as she improved to 13-3 on the year.

After Northern Kentucky picked up wins at the No. 6 and No. 5 spots, the Vikings responded with a win at No. 3 singles, as Klara Mrcela clinched the match with a 6-0, 5-7, 7-5 victory. Mrcela's win extended Cleveland State's current win streak to six straight matches, while it also marked her fifth straight singles win.

Yauch then picked up the final singles point of the day at the No. 4 spot, earning a 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 win to give the Vikings a 5-2 victory in the first match of the series.

"In singles, we were able to pick up five first sets, then all of sudden a tennis match broke out and we were in the midst of a great college match. Miruna and Blanche were both locked in today, picking up two quick wins for us, while Klara and Beth did a great job of battling for wins on their courts. Klara was down 5-2 in the third set and came back to win 7-5, never giving up and having that fighter mentality until the end, while Beth stayed focused throughout her match and was able to pull out the three-set victory. This is definitely a match that we are looking forward to having another great battle tomorrow," Polito said.

Cleveland State and Northern Kentucky will close out the weekend series tomorrow (Sunday, April 18), with first serve set for 10:00 a.m.