By Cameron Mitchell / The Jambar
The Youngstown State University men’s tennis team hosted its senior night at the YSU Indoor Tennis Center on April 19, and lost 5-2 to Cleveland State University.
YSU recognized two seniors for their individual and team efforts — Chester Wickwire and William Rassat.
In his final home match as a Penguin, Rassat won in three sets, while the ’Guins won the doubles point.
After nearly an hour of doubles, the Penguins came out on top by securing the match point. CSU won the first match before YSU fought back with wins at No. 2 and No. 3.
The Penguins’ first win came at No. 3 as freshmen Mihai Haita and Viktor Van Craenenbroeck both earned a 7-5 win. At No. 2, freshman Ethan Dasset and sophomore Onder Balci battled for a 7-6 conquest. In the tiebreaker, the ’Guins led 6-0 before the Vikings closed within 6-4.
Over in singles, Cleveland State won in straight sets at No. 1, No. 3, No. 5 and No. 6. For Youngstown State, Rassat claimed a 6-4, 5-7 and 10-2 win at No. 2 singles. Freshman Matteo Ceradelli lost at No. 4 in three sets.
At No. 1 doubles, the duo of Wickwire and Rasset teamed up and faced CSU sophomore Lincoln Battle and junior Devin Boyer, who finished their set with a 6-4 score in favor of the Vikings.
To end the final matches for the 2024-25 regular season, Wickwire and Boyar finished their final sets with scores of 7-5 and 6-1 in the Vikings favor.
After the final match, CSU claimed its fifth win between singles and doubles, as YSU finished with only two match wins throughout the evening.
Rassat finished his regular season career with YSU by posting a 15-11 singles record and was 7-15 in doubles matches. In singles, he went 10-6 in dual matches and 5-5 in fall tournaments. He was 4-4 at No. 3, 3-2 at No. 4 and 2-0 at No. 5 in the lineup. Rassat also recorded a 3-2 record in Horizon League contests.
Wickwire finished his final season as a Penguin with a record of 6-3 in singles and a final record of 7-7 in doubles. Before transferring from the University of North Carolina Asheville to YSU, he was a member of the program for two seasons in 2022-23, and went 7-7 in doubles play in his first season with UNC Asheville.
With the loss to the Vikings, YSU falls to 13-9 overall and 5-3 in Horizon League play.
YSU returns to the courts April 25, when it faces Southern Indiana University in the quarterfinals of the Horizon League Championships in Ann Arbor, Michigan.