Saturday, April 19, 2003

The Valparaiso men’s tennis team split a pair of Mid-Continent Conference matches on Saturday afternoon in Indianapolis, Ind. The Crusaders fell in the morning 4-2 to Oral Roberts before rebounding for a 5-2 win against Chicago State in the afternoon.

Valpo started strong against the Golden Eagles winning the doubles point. Ben Dunham-Freer and Jeff Vrabel were 8-4 victors at the top spot, while Nathan Gordon and Tyler Neemann won by the identical score at third doubles.

In singles play the Crusaders managed just one victory, by Gordon, in the six matches. The freshman posted a 6-4, 7-6 (1) win at fifth singles for the Brown and Gold.

The Crusaders rebounded in the afternoon to earn a decisive victory against the Cougars. Valpo swept all three doubles matches, beginning with an 8-1 triumph at the top spot by Dunham-Freer and Vrabel. Mike Menghini and Chris Widmeyer then won a tie-break for a 9-8 (4) victory at second doubles, while Gordon and Neemann cruised to an 8-0 shutout a third doubles.

In singles play, Dunham-Freer posted a 6-3, 5-7, 10-8 win at first singles, while Vrabel also needed three sets in his 6-1, 0-6, 6-1 victory at the second spot. Widmeyer tallied a 6-1, 6-1 win at fourth singles, while Menghini concluded the match with a 6-0, 6-0 blanking at sixth singles.

Valpo (5-12, 3-2 Mid-Con) finished conference play in third place. The Crusaders will conclude their regular season on Tuesday afternoon with a match at Brown Courts against Illinois-Chicago beginning at 3 p.m.