PREVIEW: Ball State men's tennis travels to Western Michigan for MAC Championship

Senior Lucas Andersen wins 7-5, 6-1 at no. 1 against Eastern Illinois freshman Freddie O'Brien during the match at Muncie's Northwest YMCA on Jan. 22. Grace Ramey // DN
Senior Lucas Andersen wins 7-5, 6-1 at no. 1 against Eastern Illinois freshman Freddie O'Brien during the match at Muncie's Northwest YMCA on Jan. 22. Grace Ramey // DN

MAC Tournament schedule

10 a.m. Friday: No.1 Buffalo vs. No. 4 Northern Illinois

2 p.m. Friday: No. 2 Western Michigan vs. No. 3 Ball State

1 p.m. Saturday: No. 1/No. 4 Winner vs. No. 2/No. 3 Winner

Ball State men’s tennis travels to Kalamazoo, Michigan, for the Mid-American Conference Tournament this weekend.

The 3-seed Cardinals (13-12, 2-5 MAC) face the defending MAC Tournament champion Western Michigan Broncos (15-7, 6-1 MAC), the 2-seed, on Friday. Head coach Bill Richards said facing the Broncos is not so easy.

“But we’re looking forward to another opportunity at the Broncos,” Richards said.

After losing to Binghamton last week, Richards talked to his team.

“I told our guys, ‘you know we didn’t conquer, but we survived,’” Richards said. “And we get to go for another week.”

This week at practice, sophomore Conner Andersen has been focusing on the last time he faced Western Michigan.

“We talk about how we feel when we’re going to win and what we’re going to do,” Andersen said. “We just go through the situations and know what to expect.”

From visualizing, senior Patrick Downs said he knows the right strategies to beat his opponent in sixth-flight singles.

"Just gonna base this match on my last match and hopefully it works again,” Downs said.

Downs is 2-5 against MAC opponents, but he's won all seven of his matches in the sixth flight this season.

“It gives me a lot of confidence to play against these opponents,” Downs said.

Ball State plays against Western Michigan at 2 p.m. Friday. The winner faces Buffalo or Northern Illinois in the championship at 1 p.m. Saturday.

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