Ball State men’s tennis (2-2) fell just short of putting together an impressive road win against Michigan State (3-3), losing 4-3 on Feb. 3.
It was a rough start for the Cardinals, as winning the doubles point was never really a possibility. The duo of fourth-years Danillo Kovacevic and Parrish Simmons dropped the first doubles 2-6, while second-year Nathaniel Webster and first-year Jacks Lancaster lost 1-6 in the third doubles.
Singles match action showed some opportunity to get back in the match, and they did just that. After dropping the first set 1-6, Jacks Lancaster came back to take the sixth slot match, winning the last two sets 6-4, 6-4.
Fourth-year Eli Herran followed suit and dropped his first set as well. He came back to win 2-6, 6-4, 6-3.
In the first singles match, Webster started out fast, winning his first set 6-4. The second set was a completely different story, as he dropped it 0-6. The third set was back and forth and he ended up winning in a tiebreak, 7-6 (7-2).
It just wasn’t enough though, and the Cardinals couldn’t get the ball to bounce their way in the other singles matches. Third-year Sajin Smith dominated his first set 6-3, but then dropped his second 0-6. He couldn’t recover in the third set and lost it 2-6.
Kovacevic lost a close, tough battle 5-7, 7-6 (7-0) and fourth-year Vince Orlando lost in No. 2 singles 2-6, 4-6.
It’s the second match in a row where the Cardinals went up against a Big Ten Conference team on the road, and just like last week versus Indiana, they showed that they can compete with those teams.
Ball State will have a week off before they host in-state rival Butler on Friday, Feb. 10 at the Northwest YMCA, with first serve scheduled for 2 p.m.
Contact Caleb Zuver with comments at cmzuver@bsu.edu or on Twitter @zuves35.
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