YSU roundup

WOMEN’S TENNIS

Penguins advance to HL title match

ANN ARBOR, MICH.

Youngstown State senior Margarita Sadovnikova scored the final eight points of her singles match to lift the Penguins to a thrilling 4-3 win over Milwaukee at the Michigan Varsity Tennis Center in the Horizon League semifinals.

The Penguins will play Cleveland State at 11 a.m. today in the final. It is their second straight year in the final.

YSU (13-11) led the match 3-1 after winning the doubles point and singles victories by Dominicka Lackova and Marta Burak. But the Panthers tied the match up with wins at No. 4 and No. 5. At the time, Sadovnikova had lost the first set and was tied 5-all in the second.

Sadovnikova held serve to take a 6-5 lead over Diana Tokar and evened the match at a set apiece when she broke serve a point later.

In the third set, it was all the senior who cruised to a 6-0 win over the freshman. Tokar had defeated Sadovnikova in Boardman earlier this season in straight sets.

After Carolyn Jesko lost 6-0, 6-1 at No. 6 to give the Panthers (13-9) their first point of the match, Lackova won 6-2, 6-3 at No. 3 and Burak quickly followed up that victory with a 6-3, 6-1 decision.

However, the Panthers beat Annina Brendel 6-3 and 6-4 at No. 4 and Nehel Sahni could not hang on after winning the first set 6-1 before dropping the next two 6-2 and 6-3.

As those matches ended, Sadovnikova was down a set and tied at five with Tokar in the second set. From that point it was all Sadovnikova who helped advance the Guins to the finals with a strong final surge.

WOMEN’S GOLF

Dixon tied for first; Penguins fall to fourth

HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS, FLA.

Youngstown State sophomore Emily Dixon remains atop the leader board at the Horizon League championships following the second round of play at the Mission Inn Resort.

As a team, the Penguins had an off day and dropped from second to fourth in the standings with a two-round total of 641. YSU had a round of 329 on Saturday after opening with a 312 yesterday.

Oakland remains in first place with a 624 following a 314 on Saturday. In second is Detroit at 632 while Valparaiso moved in front of the Guins with a 638. Cleveland State fifth with a 643.

Dixon carded an 80 on Saturday and has a two-round score of 153 for the tournament. She is tied with Detroit’s Lindsey Lammers through 36 holes.

In sixth place with a 156 is Aislynn Merling following a round of 82 on Saturday.

Allison Mitzel has registered back-to-back rounds of 80 in the tournament and stands in 16th place with her 160.

Emily Rohanna is 28th with a 172 following a second round 87 while Mia Barchetti is 29th with a 173 following an 88.

The Penguins play the final round of the tournament this morning.

MEN’S GOLF

Pluchinsky, Yeo keep YSU title hopes alive

HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS, FLA.

The Youngstown State men’s golf team had a solid day to remain in striking distance after the second round of play at the Horizon League Championships at the Mission Inn Resort.

Cleveland State, the first-round leader, had a strong performance on Saturday and leads Detroit by six shots.

The Penguins, who had a second-round score of 300, are third with a two-round total of 605. CSU stands at 593 while the Titans are at 599. Valparaiso sits in fourth with a 609 while the fifth-place team, Green Bay, is 19 shots behind the Crusaders.

Sophomore Brandon Pluchinsky carded his second straight round of 74 on Saturday and is in fourth place in the event. He has a two-round total of 148 and is six shots behind Cleveland State’s Andrew Bailey.

Bryan Yeo had the best individual round for a Penguin on Saturday at even par 72.

D.J. Holub sits in 15th place with a two-round total of 154. Holub had a round of 79 on Saturday.

Bill Gaffney and Mark Olbrych are tied for 19th with a two-round totals of 156.

The final round gets underway this morning at 8:30. As one of the top three teams, the Guins will be paired with golfers from Cleveland State and Detroit.

SOFTBALL

Crozier, Dowd lead doubleheader split

ROCHESTER, MICH.

Senior Casey Crozier tossed a five-hitter and freshman Sarah Dowd delivered a clutch two-run home run as the YSU softball team defeated Oakland, 4-2, in game one of a doubleheader split on Saturday afternoon at the OU Softball Field. The Penguins dropped game two, 3-0.

Crozier, who picked up her 16th win of the season, struck out five and allowed just one earned run for the Penguins (26-21, 8-7 HL). It marks the second straight season Crozier has notched 16 wins, which ranks second on the YSU single-season list.

Offensively, the Penguins were led by senior Courtney Ewing and sophomores Miranda Castiglione and Katie Smallcomb, who each had two hits.

In the nightcap, the Penguins were limited to just four hits, two by senior Sarah Ingalls, in the 3-0 loss. Castiglione and Smallcomb also tallied singles for the Penguins.

The Penguins and Golden Grizzlies (14-19, 3-5) conclude the series today at noon.

MEN’S TENNIS

Cleveland State drops YSU in HL semifinals

ANN ARBOR, MICH.

The Youngstown State men’s tennis team dropped a 4-2 decision to Cleveland State on Saturday afternoon at the Michigan Varsity Tennis Center in the Horizon League semifinals.

The Penguins won singles points at No. 2 and No. 6 as seniors Sebastian Hagn and Rodrigo Campos earned wins in their final collegiate contests.

At No. 2, Hagn defeated Ali Shabib by a score of 6-2 and 6-3 while at No. 6, Campos defeated Nolan Marks 6-3 and 7-6.

In singles, CSU won at No. 1 as Matt Kuelker beat Silviu Mistreanu at No. 1 by a 6-3, 6-4 score, at No. 4 where Joe VanMeter defeated Zeeshan Ismail and at No. 5 where Manuel Bellutti beat Max Schmerin 6-2, 6-3. The VanMeter win over Ismail was the match clincher for the Vikings.

Staff report