For coach Bill Richards, the Ball State University men's tennis team's loss Sunday was due to a lack of toughness.
Richards said the No. 75 Cardinals' (1-4) 6-1 loss to Michigan State University Sunday was extremely disappointing, and the lack of mental and physical toughness was the reason for the loss.
"We can't find a way to win close doubles points and that's a lack of toughness," Richards said. "Losing to a couple of teams we need to beat is a lack of toughness."
Ball State hasn't won a match since the season opener against IUPUI on Jan. 13.
Against Michigan State (5-2), the Cardinals' only wins came from sophomore Joe Vallee in No. 6 singles and senior Joe Epkey and sophomore Jose Perdomo in No. 1 doubles.
"Some guys just have to work through adversity better than what we have so far," Richards said. "Mentally, just being able to win close sets or take advantage of opportunities we have."
Injuries and a lack of confidence are also causing some of Ball State's problems, Richards said.
Richards said the Cardinals expected to beat Michigan State, and the team should not have lost to DePaul University, the match that began the losing streak.
"Those are losses that are in the record book that won't go away," Richards said. "The positive thing is we have most of our season ahead of us."
Richards said there is nothing special to do in practice to try to toughen up and turn around the season.
"Our assistant coach Ryan Baxter was telling us we don't look like we have that little edge over our opponents, whether it's a competitive edge or actual physically playing," Epkey said.
Epkey said he played average against Nick Rinks, the No. 51 player in the nation, and that it was frustrating for him because he was losing his match and he saw the other Ball State players losing as well.
In addition, Epkey said he takes some of the responsibility for the team's performance because he is the team leader, and the Cardinals have not found a way to get it done.
"We still can win the MAC championship," Epkey said. "We're young, we're struggling early but I think we'll find a way to get it done."
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