Rain Dampens Play at Ball State Invitaional
    Showers Wash Out Majority of First Day for Men's Tennis
    Yannick Goossens

    Yannick Goossens

    Sept. 25, 2009

    Contact: Greg Murphy

    MUNCIE, Ind. - The Cleveland State men's tennis team had to battle rain, stoppage of play and venue switches during the first day of the Ball State Invitational on Friday.

    With showers lingering over the Muncie, Ind., area, all 14 teams were forced to move from outdoor courts to just six indoor courts as the first day was forced into a long day of action indoors.

    "The story of today was the rain, but our guys didn't let that affect their play," assistant coach Jay Tee said. "We came out with some great results and were very impressive with our singles play today."

    The rain showers washed out doubles today and the Vikings were only able to play seven singles matches. An early morning coaches meeting on Saturday will determine how the rest of the tournament will proceed, whether that means eliminating the backdraw matches in singles, or cutting back on doubles.

    "There is nothing we can do about the weather, so we are just going to show up and continue to play like we are capable of," Tee said.

    If it was anything like today, the Vikings will be happy.

    In the "A" flight, three CSU players combined to go a perfect 3-0, including a pair of wins over Big East foes. All told, the Vikings were 3-1 against the Big East today.

    "Our players in the "A" flight played like they were supposed to win today and that's always good to see," Tee said.

    Yannick Goossens got the Vikings started with a 6-1-6-1 victory over Tom Litscher of Valparaiso. Seniors Ryan Hamning and Phil Orno followed with victories over players from DePaul with Hamning winning in straight sets, 6-1, 6-4, and Orno earning a 6-4, 2-6, 10-7 win.

    Rob Fox was the only CSU player out of three to win in the "B" flight, defeating Jose Munoz of Marquette, 7-6, 6-4.

     

     

    In the "C" flight, Jay Jones picked up a 6-1, 6-2 victory over David Stabley of Detroit.

    All told, CSU went 4-3 in its singles matches today.

    Day two of the Ball State Invitational is slated for Saturday, Sept. 26.

    CSU RESULTS
    "A" Flight Singles
    Yannick Goossens (CSU) d. Tom Litscher (Valparaiso), 6-1, 6-1
    Ryan Hamning (CSU) d. Bartoaz Jozwiak (DePaul), 6-1, 6-4
    Phil Orno (CSU) d. Ben Hartsman (DePaul), 6-2, 2-6, 10-7

    "B" Flight Singles
    Rob Fox (CSU) d. Jose Munoz (Marquette), 7-6, 6-4
    Doug Perrin (DePaul) d. Chris Klepatz (CSU), 6-4, 6-4
    Brian Starr (Xavier) d. John Haley (CSU), 2-6, 7-6, 10-5

    "C" Flight Singles
    Jay Jones (CSU) d. David Stabley (Detroit), 6-1, 6-2
    Stephen McLoughlin (Butler) d. Aris Spirtos (CSU), 6-4, 6-0