Box Score

            After dropping its quarterfinal match to Butler earlier in the day, Valparaiso rebounded with a 4-0 victory over Youngstown State on Saturday afternoon in the consolation draw of the Horizon League Tennis Championships in Indianapolis, Ind.

            The Crusaders, the sixth seed, started strong, winning a pair of doubles matches from the Penguins for the match’s first point.  Dan Brunette (Carmel, Ind./Lutheran H.S. of Indianapolis) and Kyle Stump (Plymouth, Ind./Plymouth H.S.) defeated Maurice Rucker and Zach Landgraf 8-2 at third doubles.  Alex Lau (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson Senior H.S.) and Tom Litscher (Eau Claire, Wis./Memorial H.S.) then topped Diego Cerzosimo and Christopher Leson 8-4 at the second spot.  Youngstown State’s (2-14) Scott Kathary and Ryan Trapp led Mike Shideler (Valparaiso, Ind./Munster H.S.) and Mike Wagner (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer H.S.) 7-6 when the match was stopped because the point was determined.

            In singles play, Stump defeated Landgraf 6-1, 6-0 at sixth singles to tie Lau for the team lead with 11 victories on the year.  Lau never finished his match at first singles against Kathary, but was trailing 6-1, 4-3.  Litscher added a 6-1, 6-3 triumph over Rucker at fourth singles while Brunette earned his 10^th win of the year, 6-3, 6-0 against Leson.  The Penguins, the seventh seed, led at two and three as Trapp had a 7-6 (5), 1-2 lead on Shideler and Cerzosimo lead Wagner 6-4, 2-3 when the team match was decided.

            Valparaiso (6-13) will now face Wright State (2-18), the fifth seed, on Sunday morning at 8 a.m. CDT in Indianapolis to wrap up the season in the tournament’s fifth place match.