Men’s tennis (12-10, 2-3 Mid-American Conference)
Buffalo won its first-ever MAC championship, defeating Binghamton (8-16, 3-2 MAC) 4-2 at Northern Illinois’ Vaughn Tennis Center Saturday. The match was delayed and moved indoors due to rain.
After losing the doubles point and first match in singles play, the Bulls won the final five matches, claiming their championship. Junior Pedro Alvarez started the Bulls’ run, defeating Binghamton’s Robin Lesage 7-6, 6-3 in straight sets. Alvarez was also named Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.
With the victory, the Bulls move on to the NCAA Regionals on May 8-10. The opponent and venue have yet to be determined.
Women’s tennis (7-11, 3-4 MAC)
The women’s tennis team’s season ended as it fell in the MAC tournament. The Bulls lost to Ball State (15-5, 4-3 MAC) in the quarterfinals 4-0.
Freshman Tanja Stojanovska and sophomore Laura Holterbosch won the only doubles match for the Bulls, winning the second doubles match 6-2. In singles action, the Bulls won three of the six matches. Stojanovska won the first match of the day, defeating Ball State’s Courtney Wild 3-6, 7-5, 1-0. Senior Laura Fernandez and junior Dayana Agasieva won the other two.
Stojanovska was also named MAC Freshman of the Year earlier in the week.
Baseball (11-25, 5-13 MAC)
The Bulls went 0-4 during the week, extending their losing streak to six games. Buffalo was outscored 19-3 over a three-game sweep by Western Michigan (16-22, 8-9 MAC), and on Tuesday the Bulls fell to Canisius (20-23, 9-5 Horizon) 16-5. Senior pitcher Brandon Bentley went four innings, allowing six hits, nine runs, five earned, and six walks in defeat. Freshman third baseman Charlie Sobieraski finished with two hits and two RBI’s.
Buffalo then traveled to Kalamazoo, Michigan.
The Bulls lost their first game against the Broncos 4-2. Both teams did their damage in one inning with Buffalo getting two runs in the third, while Western Michigan got four runs in the fifth. Sophomore Brett Cleland went eight innings, allowing five runs, four earned, and striking out six.
In the second and third games of the series, the Bulls were outscored 15-1. Buffalo was able to muster up just 10 hits against Western Michigan over the two-game stretch. Senior pitcher Anthony Magovney lasted just 1.1 innings, allowing six hits and four earned runs on Saturday. Sophomore pitcher Mike Kaelin relieved senior pitcher Mike McGee and gave up four earned runs in three innings pitched.
The Bulls have a two-game series against Niagara (10-22-2, 7-8 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) on Tuesday. The first game begins at 2 p.m. and the second game starts at 5 p.m.
Softball (11-35, 3-13 MAC)
Buffalo had a pair of two-game series this week, going 1-1 against both Toledo and Bowling Green.
In game one against Toledo, the Bulls won 2-1, but Buffalo didn’t record an RBI. It scored its first run on a wild pitch and its second on an illegal pitch by Toledo. Sophomore pitcher Bobbi Langlois finished with eight hits allowed, one run and two strikeouts in seven innings and picking up the victory. Sophomore Savannah Norcio finished with two hits.
The second and final game of the series was a 4-3 win for Toledo in eight innings. Langlois pitched 7.1 innings, allowing 10 hits and four earned runs. Senior Alexis Curtiss finished with three hits, one RBI and one walk.
On Sunday, the Bulls split a doubleheader against Bowling Green (17-26, 6-12 MAC). Buffalo dropped the first game 1-0 but won the second game 3-1. Langlois pitched six innings and gave up six hits. She surrendered a single in the second inning that would eventually decide the game.
In the second game, freshman pitcher Charlotte Miller picked up her fourth win of the season behind a seven-inning performance, giving up one run and six hits.
The next series for the Bulls is a two-game series against Northern Illinois (25-19, 9-5 MAC) on Friday. The first game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m., with the second at 3 p.m.
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Photo: Paul Hokanson/UB Athletics
