DETROIT (4/6/17) – The University of Detroit Mercy men's and women's tennis teams are both in action this weekend from the Buckeye State. The Titans will take on Youngstown State first on Saturday, Apr. 8, before turning their attention to Cleveland State for a matchup on Sunday, Apr. 9.
THE SCHEDULE
Saturday, April 8 at Boardman Tennis Center
3 p.m. – Titan men (6-11, 0-1) at YSU (15-6, 3-1)
6 p.m. – Titan women (6-8, 2-0) at YSU (9-8, 3-1)
Sunday, April 9 at Medical Mutual Tennis Pavilion
10 a.m. – Titan men at Cleveland State (7-12, 2-2)
2 p.m. – Titan women at Cleveland State (10-8, 4-0)
SCOUTING THE TITANS
The Men
The Titans suffered a tough 4-3 loss in the squad's Horizon League opener against Green Bay. Detroit Mercy will look to end a three-game skid since defeating Chattanooga, 4-1, on Mar. 9. The Titans have sandwiched a loss to No. 35 Indiana with a pair of 4-3 losses against Dayton and Green Bay in their last three.
Sophomore
Artem Vasheshnikov leads the team with 16 singles victories, including a 5-4 mark from the Titans' top line. Junior
Nathan Ponton has been Detroit Mercy's hottest player, winning his last four from the third line of singles to improve to 15-6 on the season. Senior
Patryk Koscielski has 11 singles wins while playing from No. 1 and 2, followed by nine singles wins from both
Chance Conley and
Adam Zychowicz. In doubles, the Titans are led by Conley and Koscielski with eight wins and Ponton and Vasheshnikov with six wins.
The Women
The Titans enter the weekend at 6-8 overall after sweeping their first two conference matches against Milwaukee and Green Bay. Detroit Mercy powered past the Panthers, 6-1, before cruising to a 4-0 win over the Phoenix.
Senior
Nynke Van Der Goot leads the squad with 13 singles wins and is 9-4 from the fourth and fifth positions. Classmate
Anna Davydova has eight singles wins, including five from the top line. Sophomore
Iris Thioux and freshman
Ksenia Providokhina each have seven eight wins as well, while the duo of Van Der Goot and Thioux pace Detroit Mercy with five doubles wins.
SCOUTING THE PENGUINS
The Men
The Penguins have won five of their last six to improve to 15-6 overall. YSU fell in their Horizon League opener to Valpo before picking up three straight conference victories over UIC, Wright State and NKU. The Penguins are 7-2 at home, led by Mitch Maroscher's 14-4 record from No. 1 singles. Thomas Rodrigues leads the team with 20 singles wins, followed by Joao Garretto with 16 wins.
The Women
YSU enters the weekend on a three-game win streak and sits at 9-8 overall on the season. The Penguins are 3-1 in Horizon League play with wins over Valpo, Wright State and NKU and a narrow 4-3 loss against UIC. Youngstown State is 4-4 from home and are led by Dominika Lackova with nine wins from the top line and Noelly Nsimba with a dominant 11-3 mark at No. 2 singles.
SCOUTING THE VIKINGS
The Men
Cleveland State enters the weekend at 7-12 overall and an even 2-2 in Horizon League play after defeating Wright State last week. The Vikings opened conference play with a win over UIC, before falling to Valpo and NKU. Cleveland State is 4-3 at home this season and are led by Nico Mostardi's nine wins at No. 1 singles and Colton Buffington's seven wins from No. 2.
The Women
The Vikings are scorching hot as of late, winning their last five contests heading into the weekend. Cleveland State is 4-0 in Horizon League play with a pair of convincing wins over UIC and Valpo and two 4-3 road wins at NKU and Wright State. The Vikings are deep, with seven wins posted at each singles position and six players with 10 or more wins on the season. Isabella Spindler is 7-8 from the top line, followed by Victoria Bensimon at 10-4 from No. 2.
ON TAP
Following this weekend's action, the Titan men and women return to Horizon League play next weekend at home against Wright State (Apr. 15) and Northern Kentucky (Apr. 16).
