CRESTVIEW HILLS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky men's tennis picked up its first Horizon League win of the season, taking down Cleveland State in a gritty 4-3 victory. With the win, NKU moves to 5-4 on the season and 1-1 in League play, while Cleveland State drops to 6-12 (1-2 HL).
Match Notables
- NKU got out ahead early after taking the doubles point with wins in the No. 2 and 3 spots. Mate Virag teamed up with Court Clark in the No. 2 doubles pairing, and the duo had a dominant outing against Colton Buffington and William Malm with a 6-0 win. Javier Araya and Andrew Niehaus extended their winning streak to five matches as a team, fending off Nico Mostardi and Kevin Goth, 7-5, to clinch the first point.
- CSU took the lead, 2-1, with wins in No. 2 and 4 singles, but Virag righted the ship with a 6-1, 7-6(6) victory in No. 1 singles over Mostardi. He has won six straight singles matches for the Norse, five of which were in straight sets.
- In No. 3 singles, Araya fought to push a third set against Mirko Radosevic, falling 6-3 in the opening set before bouncing back with a 6-4 second set. He held off a late surge by Radosevic in the tiebreak set and took advantage of three-straight double faults to win it, 6-4.
- With a win in No. 6 singles, Cleveland State tied up the contest at 3-3 and the match fell into the hands of Niehaus and Malm battling it out in No. 5 singles. Niehaus took the first set, 6-2, but Malm retaliated with a 7-5 second set to push a third. The freshman Norse came up clutch in the tiebreak set, winning 6-3 to seal the win for NKU.
- The Norse are back in action tomorrow against Youngstown State. The women play first at 11:30 a.m. ET, with the men's match to follow.
For more information on NKU's men's and women's tennis program, follow the team on Twitter @NKUNorseTennis or at facebook.com/nkunorsetennis.
Agate
NKU 4, Cleveland State 3
Singles (Order of Finish: 2,4,1,3,6,5*)
1.
Mate Virag (NKU) def. Nico Mostardi (CSU) 6-1, 7-6(6)
2. Colton Buffington (CSU) def.
Lukas Clemens (NKU) 7-5, 4-1, retired
3.
Javier Araya (NKU) def. Mirko Radosevic (CSU) 3-6, 6-4, 6-4
4. Benjamin Slade (CSU) def.
Court Clark (NKU) 6-4, 6-3
5.
Andrew Niehaus (NKU) def. William Malm (CSU) 6-2, 5-7, 6-3
6. Kevin Goth (CSU) def.
Adrian Isache (NKU) 4-6, 6-4, 6-4
Doubles (Order of Finish: 2,1,3*)
1. Mirko Radosevic/Benjamin Slade (CSU) def.
Lukas Clemens/
Adrian Isache (NKU) 6-3
2.
Court Clark/
Mate Virag (NKU) def. Colton Buffington/William Malm (CSU) 6-0
3.
Javier Araya/
Andrew Niehaus (NKU) def. Kevin Goth/Nico Mostardi (CSU) 7-5
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