After a long, tense, and traumatic day for the men's tennis team, the deciding factor wasn't a powerful overhand shot, a slick backhand, or a sneaky drop shot.
It was cramps.
Buffalo (1-3) fought hard, but eventually fell to Cleveland State (1-3), 4-3 on Sunday at the Miller Tennis Center in Williamsville, NY. The resiliency of the Bulls was not enough to hold off the Vikings.
It all came down to two singles matches to determine the outcome of the event.
After a tiring match that came down to a final, tie-breaking set, muscle cramps became the downfall for senior Alex Kalinin. The pain in his right quad was too unbearable, as he eventually fell to Cleveland State's Matt Ford 6-7, 7-5, 6-2.
"No one can sit back and say they did all they can do," said head coach Lee Nickell. "That being said, it was unfortunate that Alex had suffered dehydration."
The match leading up to the finale wasn't without drama as well, as junior Vusa Hove held off Matt Kuelker in what was an intense 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 victory. Momentum swung wildly on both sides of the pendulum as the two players traded games, as well as insults. Hove's triumph improved his overall singles record to 8-4.
"[Kuelker] kept bringing the energy, [so] I had to step up my energy and my game," Hove said. "When it came down to the third set, it came down to controlling my nerves and playing the crucial points well. That is one of the tougher opponents I have faced. I have had a lot of three-set matches, and I am more experienced now."
That success did not transition into the next match, and Nickell's frustration with the Bulls' mental preparation was very apparent.
"I don't feel we were the better team," Nickell said. "They showed more resiliency in tough spots and that's the key to beating a better team; being resilient when the pressure's on and right now we are finding ways to lose matches."
Although the match as a whole came down to that final set, the Bulls struggled in doubles play, as the Vikings swept Buffalo in three matches. Kalinin and freshman Damien David headlined those struggles, as the Vikings pair of Matt Kuelker and Jorg Van Der Vloet defeated the Buffalo duo, 8-3.
"Our top three [Hove, David, and senior Wojciech Starakiewicz] are consistent, however down low we have zero consistency," Nickell said. "I'm really happy with the way Damien is playing, but he could be better with doubles."
David also improved his singles record to 14-4 with a big win over Ali Shabibb. David won both sets 6-3, 6-2 to help the Bulls remain in contention to win the match.
"I think I did what I had to do to win, I didn't play my best but I played to win." David said.
Starakiweicz easily took care of Yannick Goossens 6-1, 6-2 to help add to the Bulls rally. The consistent play of the top three, (Hove, David, Wojciech) is what kept the Bulls clinging to life every match.
The Bulls will go on to facePenn on Saturday, and Princeton on Sunday.
"We're going to change our squad a little bit, we're going to change our travel roster," Nickell said. "We're going to give guys who haven't had opportunities an opportunity, and this week is going to be a ‘hell' week."
Email: sports@ubspectrum.com
Photo: Paul Hokanson / UB Athletics
