The men's tennis team's three-game winning streak came to an end Sunday with a loss to the 35th-ranked Michigan Wolverines.
The Cardinals fell by a score of 5-2. Ball State earned its two points in the second and sixth singles positions. The Wolverines came out victorious in four of the six singles matches and all three doubles matches.
With Sunday's loss, the team's record fell to 5-11, a disappointing record for a team heavily favored to win the Mid-American Conference title. Head coach Bill Richards, however, is not worried.
"I'm not apologizing for our record," Richards said. "Our record is a direct result of the competition we play."
After Sunday's loss to Michigan, Ball State's record against Big Ten schools fell to 0-7. The Big Ten, according to Richards, is a traditional tennis power-house.
"All 11 of our losses this year came to teams who are ranked fairly high nationally," Richards said. "We had opportunities to win a lot of those meets."
Five of the Cardinals' 11 losses were either 5-2 or 4-3. In those meets, one or two wins would have changed the outcome.
The two match victories for Ball State came from junior Chris Varga and freshman Brad Rhodes. Varga continued his impressive play this season in the No. 2 singles spot. Varga has the best record on the Ball State team this season.
"He played very much within himself," Richards said. "He has a way of exposing his opponent's weaknesses."
Rhodes won his second straight match in the No. 6 position.
"He is just a raw freshman," Richards said, "but he has incredible potential."
The Cardinals will be in action against Louisville on Thursday.
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