April 9, 2010

DEKALB, Ill. - A week after opening Mid-American Conference play, the Northern Illinois men's tennis team concludes a five-match homestand Sunday, as the Huskies host Buffalo at the Huskie Tennis Courts in DeKalb. The match is scheduled for a 1 p.m. CST start.

Due to high winds in DeKalb, head coach Patrick Fisher and the Huskies (9-8, 0-1 MAC) were forced inside the Forest City Tennis Center in Rockford last Sunday, and dropped a 6-1 decision to Toledo. NIU, 3-1 on its season-long five-match homestand, looks to pick up its first conference win of the season Sunday.

"Sunday's match is big for us," head coach Patrick Fisher said. "Buffalo is much improved from last season and unbeaten in conference play so far. It will be a tough match for us but it just shows how much our league has improved. We are the youngest team in the conference but our talent can compete with anybody."

Freshman Maksym Bartiuk, who leads the Huskies with 11 singles wins, dominated Toledo's Aleksandar Elezovic in straight sets last Sunday for his eighth-straight victory at the No. 1 position. The 6-foot-1 Ukraine native has won five consecutive matches in straight sets.

"Maksym has not lost in two months and has had a great year so far," said Fisher. "He is one of the best players in the conference and has the ability to sustain this success for the rest of the season."

Buffalo (9-5, 2-0 MAC) plays at Chicago State Saturday before traveling to DeKalb. The Bulls had their five-match win streak and perfect home record snapped by No. 59 Binghamton, 5-2, in Buffalo last Sunday.

Four of Buffalo's five losses this season have come on the road. Last season, senior Javier Bernabe picked up No. 4 singles and No. 3 doubles victories to lead the Huskies to a 5-2 road victory over Buffalo.