Playoff Quest Continues With Sweep
FARGO, N.D. (3/18/18)--- Concordia's quest for their first MIAC playoff berth since 2011 continued as they ground out a trio of super-set tie-breaker wins in singles play and swept St. Mary's 9-0 in the first home match of the season.
The win is the third straight, and second consecutive in conference play, for the Cobbers who are now 8-6 in all matches and 3-3 in league play. Concordia is currently in fifth place in the race for the Top 5 spots in the MIAC standings which make the postseason.
Concordia seized control of the match in doubles play by winning all three bouts to take a 3-0 lead into singles play.
The Cobbers then used their experience to win a trio of singles matches in the super-set tie-breaker. Senior Isaac Toivonen won his eighth match of the year by winning 10-2 in the tie-breaker. Toivonen won 6-3 in the opening set but then lost 7-5 in the second to set up the super-set.
Fellow senior Matthew Engum and sophomore David Youngs both dropped the first set of their singles match but then rallied to win in the tie-breaker. Engum lost 7-5 in the opener at No.5 singles but then claimed a 6-2 victory in the second set and carried that success into the super-set and won 10-3.
Youngs fell 6-4 in the first set at No.3 singles but then got one more break in the second set and won in extra games 7-5. He then rolled to a 10-5 win in the tie-breaker.
Erik Porter, Jared Saue and David Schneck all won in straight sets in their singles bouts. Porter cruised to a 6-2, 6-3 win at No.2 singles. Porter is 6-8 on the year and has won his last three matches.
Saue had to go to a tie-breaker in the first set and ended up winning 7-6 (4), 6-3 at No.4 singles. He is now tied with Toivonen for the team lead in singles wins with eight. He has won three straight singles bouts and four of his last five.
Schneck finished off the match with a 6-2, 6-2 win at No.6 singles. He now has five singles victories in 2018 and has won two straight.
WHAT'S NEXT: Concordia will be tested in its next match as they try and run their win streak to four matches. The Cobbers will host Macalester on Sunday, Mar. 25 at 2 p.m. at Courts Plus in Fargo. The Scots are currently in third place in the MIAC standings and are 2-0 in conference play.
MATCH RESULTS:
Concordia-M'head 9, Saint Mary's University 0
Mar 18, 2018 at Fargo, N.D. (Courts Plus)
Singles competition
1. Isaac Toivonen (CC) def. Brenden Amiotte (SMU) 6-3, 5-7, 10-2
2. Erik Porter (CC) def. Brett Giesen (SMU) 6-2, 6-3
3. David Youngs (CC) def. Bobby Tiedeman (SMU) 4-6, 7-5, 10-5
4. Jared Saue (CC) def. Robbie Sobczak (SMU) 7-6 (7-4), 6-3
5. Matthew Engum (CC) def. Alec Rudh (SMU) 5-7, 6-2, 10-3
6. David Schneck (CC) def. Alex Zuzek (SMU) 6-2, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. Isaac Toivonen/David Youngs (CC) def. Brenden Amiotte/Bobby Tiedeman (SMU) 8-5
2. Erik Porter/David Schneck (CC) def. Robbie Sobczak/Alex Holm (SMU) 8-6
3. Matthew Engum/Ben Swanson (CC) def. Brett Giesen/Alex Zuzek (SMU) 8-4