Men's tennis weekly release
Bulls Return to Win Column
The University at Buffalo men's tennis team picked up a 4-3 victory at Cleveland State on Saturday afternoon at the Chagrin Valley Athletic Club to snap a two-match losing streak.
Ionescu Scores the Decider
The Bulls (3-2) picked up the win over the Vikings with three singles victories after claiming the opening doubles point. Sophomore Sebastian Ionescu scored the clincher in the number three contest. Ionescu needed three sets to down Ali Shabib, 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 and give the Bulls the match. It was Ionescu's fourth win of the dual season since the sophomore transferred to Buffalo from Arizona. Also earning singles wins were Damien David at number two and Pablo Alvarez at number four as both players won in straight sets. David knocked off Matt Kuelker, 6-4, 6-2 while Alvarez, who moved up from the fifth slot, downed Joe Vanmeter, 6-4, 6-1.
Doubles Lineup Juggling Gets the Point
UB clinched the opening doubles point with wins in the number one and three matches as the team used a pair of new combinations for the first time this season. David and Akhil Mehta downed Shabib and Niklas Johnson, 8-4, in the number one match. David leads the Bulls with 11 doubles wins this season and he and Mehta are 4-1 as the number one combo for the squad this spring. Sergio Arevalillo and Ashwin Sharma combined for the first time this season as the duo knocked off Matt Ford and Jorg van der Vloet, 8-6, in the number three match. Vusa Hove and Ionescu combined at number two as they dropped an 8-6 decision to CSU's Vanmeter and Nolan Marks.
A Nickell's Worth
Head coach Lee Nickell spoke following the Cleveland State match. "We did a very good job of starting fast today in both doubles and singles, but didn't do a great job of finishing," said head coach Lee Nickell. "We are certainly pleased with beating Cleveland State for the first time and they are a very well coached and feisty team. We are excited to get back on court on Monday and continue to work on improving."
Home Cooking This Weekend
The Bulls open their home schedule this weekend as they hosts Niagara on Friday and Duquesne on Saturday at the Miller Tennis Center. Friday's match against the Purple Eagles is slated for a 6:00 pm start while it's an early wakeup call of 9:00 am for Saturday's contest with the Dukes. Saturday's match preceeds the UB women's match against Temple, scheduled for 1:00 pm. The Bulls hold a 97-3-1 edge over Niagara in the all-time series while they trail Duquesne 11-10 in that series, though the Bulls have won the last four meetings.