One Down, One Up

ST. PETER, Minn. (3/26/17)---Concordia split its conference/non-conference road doubleheader over the weekend as they lost 6-3 against Macalester on Saturday and then shutout UMAC opponent Bethany Lutheran 9-0 on Sunday.

The win on Sunday over the Vikings is the first non-conference win of the year for the Cobbers. CC is now 3-7 overall. The loss on Saturday against the Scots drops Concordia to 2-4 in MIAC play.

Isaac Toivonen and Erik Porter swept their singles competition over the weekend. Both players posted wins at Macalester and then also on Sunday against Bethany Lutheran at the Gustavus Tennis Center. 

Toivonen rolled to straight set wins in both matches. He won 6-3, 6-3 on Saturday at No.1 singles against Macalester and then cruised to a double bagel win on Sunday. His win against Macalester was impressive for Toivonen as he was beaten by the same opponent last year in straight sets. 

Toivonen is now 7-3 on the season in singles play. His seven wins leads the team and is the single highest total of his college career. Toivonen had six singles wins as a freshman in 2015. 

Porter ground out a super set win on Saturday at No.4 singles as he sprinted out of the gate in the first set and won 6-0 but then fell 6-2 in the second set. Porter was able to turn the table in the super-set tie-breaker by claiming a 13-11 win. He then moved up to No.3 singles on Sunday and earned a straight set - 6-3, 6-1 – win. Porter is now 3-7 in singles play in his first year of collegiate tennis.

The lone doubles win against the Scots on Saturday came at the No.1 spot where Toivonen and doubles partner David Youngs claimed an 8-6 win.

The Cobbers set the tone for the entire match on Sunday by sweeping the doubles play. All three matches were decided in 12 or fewer games. Toivonen and Youngs won 8-2 at No.1 while David Schneck and Matthew Engum earned an 8-4 win at No.2 doubles and Porter and Jesse Schneeberger recorded an 8-2 victory at the No.3 spot.

Toivonen and Youngs lead the Concordia doubles crew in wins this season. The No.1 doubles tandem is now 6-4 on the season and has won five straight matches. 

The highlight of singles play on Sunday came from a pair of Cobber freshmen who both earned their first collegiate singles win. Jared Saue and Carter Steffes both got a check in the win column as they claimed wins at the No.5 and No.6 singles spots. Saue won in straight sets at No.5 with a 6-0, 6-1 victory and Steffes outlasted his opponent at No.6 singles with a 5-7, 6-1, 10-4 victory.

WHAT'S NEXT: Concordia will only have one match next weekend when they host Carleton on Saturday, Apr. 1 at 5:30 p.m. at Courts Plus.    

Macalester 6, Concordia-Moorhead 3
Mar 25, 2017 at Lakeville, Minn. (Lifetime Fitness)

Singles competition
1. Isaac Toivonen (CC) def. Josh Doyle (MAC) 6-3, 6-3
2. Aidan Tirpack (MAC) def. David Youngs (CC) 7-5, 6-0
3. Hardt Bergmann (MAC) def. David Schneck (CC) 7-6, 6-3
4. Erik Porter (CC) def. Peter Willenborg (MAC) 6-0, 2-6, 13-11
5. Matthew Yang (MAC) def. Matthew Engum (CC) 0-6, 6-3, 10-4
6. Ben Wilson (MAC) def. Jesse Schneeberger (CC) 6-2, 6-1

Doubles competition
1. Isaac Toivonen/David Youngs (CC) def. Josh Doyle/Matthew Yang (MAC) 8-6
2. Hardt Bergmann/Aidan Tirpack (MAC) def. Erik Porter/David Schneck (CC) 8-5
3. Peter Willenborg/Ben Wilson (MAC) def. Matthew Engum/Jesse Schneeberger (CC) 8-6