Ball State was a couple of points away from its biggest win, as a team, since 2003. The Cardinals fell to No. 40 Northwestern 4-3 in a hotly contested match.
"It couldn't have been any closer," coach Bill Richards said. "It was a very close match that could have gone either way, and we came out on the short end."
The team advanced to 4-0 in doubles points this season, with No. 56 Matt Baccarani and Patrick Thompson defeating Chuck Perrin and Christian Tempe 8-6 and Paul Newman and Klint Knable picking up an 8-4 win over Matt Christian and Justin Hoeveler.
"We didn't lose very often in doubles last year," Richards said. "We're picking that up right where we were last year. But you can't depend on that, you have to depend on your singles. You have to be able to win three or four singles matches. We need to figure out how to get those close wins."
The top of the singles lineup performed admirably, with Baccarani defeating No. 114 Thomas Hanus 4-6, 7-6, 7-5 and Matt Laramore defeating Perrin 6-3, 6-7, 7-5. The win was Baccarani's second straight team-leading performance, and his three-set loss to No. 2 Ryler Deheart last week was enough to earn him Mid-American Conference Player of the Week honors.
"That was a crucial win for Matt from an individual standpoint," Richards said. "He lost a lot of close matches to tough opponents last year, and it was very important for him to step forward and win a match like this this year. It was very, very big for him to get the W."
While Tony Epkey and Jan Polhamus were able to draw third sets in singles, neither was able to pick up the key win to push the Cardinals over.
"If you would have told me that we would have won the doubles point and win at one and two singles, I would have thought we were going to win," Richards said. "Unfortunately, the guys down lower in the lineup weren't able to get the win, but you have to be accountable of your performances, and we will continue to evaluate and make changes."
The Cardinals continued to make lineup changes, with Polhamus moving up to the No. 5 slot, Thompson moving back into the lineup in the No. 6 slot, and Knable sitting singles out.
"We talk about it all the time; we play a tough schedule to answer questions about ourselves," Richards said. "Our big question is who's going to be in the lineup. It's something we really haven't worked out yet.
"We need to find guys who can get those big wins in singles."
Still, Richards said that he was happy with his team's performance this season.
"I'm certainly not critical with our performance level," he said. "We put ourselves in the position to earn the win."
"It was a great college match with a lot of close matches. There was a great environment, a great crowd. It was a great effort, and we just couldn't get over the hump."
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