KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Illinois State men's tennis team lost its second match in a row to a ranked opponent Friday afternoon, dropping a close one to No. 68 Western Michigan, 4-3.
Illinois State (4-5) began the afternoon in Kalamzoo earning the doubles point, thanks in part to junior partners Jakub Eisner and Rolando Torrellas' fifth straight victory, a 7-5 defeat over the Broncos' Maik Steiner and Ruben Greiner. Junior Rodrigo Oliveira and freshman Andreas Boers sealed the doubles point, edging out Western Michigan's Jefta Kecic and Jimmy Beckwith, 7-6.
"I thought we played well today," said head coach Mark Klysner. "We came out strong to win the doubles point, which we have had good success with."
The Redbirds battled in singles play, but were unable to notch a third win to secure the victory. Boers and fellow freshman Christoffer Greve were the only ISU players to win their respective flights, with Boers pulling out a straight-set victory over Jimmy Beckwith in the fifth flight, 6-4, 6-4, and Greve defeating WMU's Stephen Payne in the sixth flight, 6-0, 3-6, 7-5.
"Singles was close on a lot of courts, and a couple of points were the difference," said Klysner. "Overall, we competed well, and we will definitely be ready for No. 29 Drake on Sunday."
The Redbirds' next match will take place Sunday as the squad travels to Des Moines, Iowa to take on Missouri Valley Conference foe Drake at 3 p.m. CST. The match marks ISU's first against a conference opponent this season.
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