Sunday, January 31
Cleveland, OH
11 a.m.
Ball State University
4
at
3
Cleveland State University
More Adams Heroics, Big Kovacevic Win Lift Men’s Tennis over CSU Again
January 31, 2021 | Men's Tennis
Kovacevic defeats top-100 player at No. 1 singles, Adams clinches second straight win
CLEVELAND -- Chris Adams must have thought he had a case of déjà vu.
Less than 24 hours earlier, he found himself in the same position on the same court. Last match on. Third-set tiebreaker. The Cardinals' fortunes on his racquet.
And just like he had done Saturday evening to clinch a big comeback victory, the Ball State senior came through again Sunday.
After fighting off two match points in the breaker, Adams earned one of his own and capitalized. The senior sent Cleveland State's Clark Bilinovich chasing a well-placed lob, closed in on the net and emphatically slammed away an overhead for the win.
Adams' arms and racquet went flying into the air as his teammates rushed the court to celebrate a second straight 4-3 victory over the Vikings. BSU improved to 3-1 on the young season, while CSU fell to 0-3.
This weekend's matches were not for the faint of heart. Filled with three-setters and nail-biting tiebreakers, the competition was fierce. Adams saw the final four sets he played, including all three Sunday, go to tiebreakers.
Not lost in the excitement of the late heroics was Danilo Kovacevic's straight-set victory over Nico Mostardi, a top-100 player in the Oracle/ITA national rankings, at No. 1 singles. Kovacevic took a pair of 7-5 sets over Mostardi in what was the second singles match off the court.
Only BSU freshman Sajin Smith finished off his opponent faster, limiting Kade Mindry to just three total games at the No. 5 spot. His victory put the Cardinals on the board after Cleveland State had taken the doubles point for the second day in a row. Eli Herran later polished off a three-set win over Raul Teichmann at No. 6 singles to put the Cardinals on the doorstep.
Maxime Mareschal-Hay kept Cleveland State's hopes alive by taking down Vince Orlando in a third-set tiebreaker at the No. 4 position (BSU's other singles loss also came in three sets for Thibault de Negri at No. 2).
But the final three-set breaker of the weekend went Adams' way just like it had the night before. Adams ran his record to a perfect 3-0 as he helped the Cardinals extend their winning streak to three.
After four straight matches on the road to start the season, Ball State now returns home for three in a row. The Cardinals will host Xavier at 2 p.m. Friday on the indoor courts at Muncie's Northwest YMCA.
Singles Results
Kovacevic (BSU) def. Mostardi (CSU), 7-5, 7-5
Phillips (CSU) def. de Negri (BSU), 6-2, 5-7, 6-2
Adams (BSU) def. Bilinovich (CSU), 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4), 7-6 (7)
Mareschal-Hay (CSU) def. Orlando (BSU), 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (4)
Smith (BSU) def. Mindry (CSU), 6-1, 6-2
Herran (BSU) def. Teichmann (CSU), 7-5, 6-7 (1), 6-2
Order of finish: 5, 1, 2, 6, 4, 3
Doubles Results
1. Mostardi/Phillips (CSU) def. Orlando/Adams (BSU), 6-4
2. Bilinovich/Teichmann (CSU) def. de Negri/Kovacevic (BSU), 6-4
3. Bonin/Herran (BSU) def. Mindry/Mareschal-Hay (CSU), 6-4
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2
Less than 24 hours earlier, he found himself in the same position on the same court. Last match on. Third-set tiebreaker. The Cardinals' fortunes on his racquet.
And just like he had done Saturday evening to clinch a big comeback victory, the Ball State senior came through again Sunday.
After fighting off two match points in the breaker, Adams earned one of his own and capitalized. The senior sent Cleveland State's Clark Bilinovich chasing a well-placed lob, closed in on the net and emphatically slammed away an overhead for the win.
Adams' arms and racquet went flying into the air as his teammates rushed the court to celebrate a second straight 4-3 victory over the Vikings. BSU improved to 3-1 on the young season, while CSU fell to 0-3.
This weekend's matches were not for the faint of heart. Filled with three-setters and nail-biting tiebreakers, the competition was fierce. Adams saw the final four sets he played, including all three Sunday, go to tiebreakers.
Not lost in the excitement of the late heroics was Danilo Kovacevic's straight-set victory over Nico Mostardi, a top-100 player in the Oracle/ITA national rankings, at No. 1 singles. Kovacevic took a pair of 7-5 sets over Mostardi in what was the second singles match off the court.
Only BSU freshman Sajin Smith finished off his opponent faster, limiting Kade Mindry to just three total games at the No. 5 spot. His victory put the Cardinals on the board after Cleveland State had taken the doubles point for the second day in a row. Eli Herran later polished off a three-set win over Raul Teichmann at No. 6 singles to put the Cardinals on the doorstep.
Maxime Mareschal-Hay kept Cleveland State's hopes alive by taking down Vince Orlando in a third-set tiebreaker at the No. 4 position (BSU's other singles loss also came in three sets for Thibault de Negri at No. 2).
But the final three-set breaker of the weekend went Adams' way just like it had the night before. Adams ran his record to a perfect 3-0 as he helped the Cardinals extend their winning streak to three.
After four straight matches on the road to start the season, Ball State now returns home for three in a row. The Cardinals will host Xavier at 2 p.m. Friday on the indoor courts at Muncie's Northwest YMCA.
Singles Results
Kovacevic (BSU) def. Mostardi (CSU), 7-5, 7-5
Phillips (CSU) def. de Negri (BSU), 6-2, 5-7, 6-2
Adams (BSU) def. Bilinovich (CSU), 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4), 7-6 (7)
Mareschal-Hay (CSU) def. Orlando (BSU), 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (4)
Smith (BSU) def. Mindry (CSU), 6-1, 6-2
Herran (BSU) def. Teichmann (CSU), 7-5, 6-7 (1), 6-2
Order of finish: 5, 1, 2, 6, 4, 3
Doubles Results
1. Mostardi/Phillips (CSU) def. Orlando/Adams (BSU), 6-4
2. Bilinovich/Teichmann (CSU) def. de Negri/Kovacevic (BSU), 6-4
3. Bonin/Herran (BSU) def. Mindry/Mareschal-Hay (CSU), 6-4
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,2,3
#1 Singles Match
12
77
Nico Mostardi / 0 (91/-) [CLEVEST]
55
#2 Singles Match
123
272
Luke Phillips / 0 [CLEVEST]
656
#3 Singles Match
123
677
Clark Bilinovich / 0 [CLEVEST]
766
#4 Singles Match
123
566
Maxime Mareshal-Hay / 0 [CLEVEST]
747
#5 Singles Match
12
66
Kade Mindry / 0 [CLEVEST]
12
#6 Singles Match
123
766
Raul Teichmann / 0 [CLEVEST]
572
Order of Finish:
5,1,2,6,4,3
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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