With the score tied at 3-3 in Ball State's matchup with Illinois State on Sunday, senior Zane Smith found himself in a familiar situation.
Just under 24 hours prior to the match, Smith lost a tough three-set match to Detroit's Nick Tolomei.
"I had match point in my match with Tolomei," Smith said. "The guy hit a net court and the ball dribbled over the net. I lost that match point and I ended up losing the match."
On Sunday, Smith found himself in another three-set battle. Unlike Saturday's matchup with Tolomei, Smith had to win the third set in order for Ball State to defeat Illinois State.
With the match in his hands and his teammates cheering him on from the stands, Smith was able to redeem himself. He defeated Illinois State's Jusso Ojanen 6-2, 4-6, 6-2.
"That was good for my mental state," Smith said. "And confidence wise, that was really big for me."
In addition to Smith's game-winning match, freshman Ray Leonard continued his winning ways. In No. 2 singles, he defeated Illinois State's Tuomas Manner 6-3, 6-1. In No.1 doubles, he and junior Dalton Albertin defeated Alexander Pelaez and Manner 8-5.
"I came out really focused," Leonard said. "I was making sure to move my feet a lot because I noticed when I don't move my feet as well, my results aren't quite as good. I also played loose and I didn't let him [Manner] play me. I definitely dictated the pace of the match."
Sophomore Austin Smith also came up big for Ball State. After the Cardinals fell behind 3-2 in the match, Smith tied the score at 3-3 with a key win at the No. 5 singles position. He defeated Illinois State's Muddappa Appanervanda 4-6, 6-2, 6-3.
"I think probably the pivotal point in the singles was Austin Smith," coach Bill Richards said. "After losing the first set and with us having lost four first sets, I think that was the real key for him to come back, win that second set and kind of stabilize things a little bit. Obviously, if he loses that second set and loses the match, [Illinois State's] going to end up with their fourth point. So that was big."
In its second match on Sunday, Ball State took on the Anderson Ravens. Unlike its first match, which took about four hours to finish, Ball State made quick work of Anderson with a 7-0 win.
Senior Andres Monroy made his season debut in the matchup after being out the entire fall season with a hip injury. In No. 3 doubles, he and freshman Patrick Elliott defeated Anderson's Adam Millikan and Logan Hendrickson 8-1. At No. 5 singles, Monroy defeated Millikan 6-0, 6-0.
"I feel pretty good," Monroy said. "I still have a lot of work to do on and off the court. I feel like I'm about 85 to 90 percent. I've been working very hard to come back and put something on the table for this team.
"I'm very happy to be back again. It's been a tough four months for me."
Richards said the team can focus more on individual things in its upcoming matches.
"We can look at what things didn't work well in these matches, what were the problem areas and try to spend some individual time working on those parts of the game that need to continue to get better," he said. "And along with that is the whole physical thing."
Ball State returns to action Saturday when it travels to Dayton, Ohio, to play Army. First serve is at noon.
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