Life can be rough playing against the Big Ten Conference. The Ball State University men's tennis team found that out first-hand this weekend against No. 4 Illinois.-áHoping to end their two-game losing streak, the Cardinals fell 7-0 to a talented Fighting Illini squad on Saturday.
The loss drops the No. 68 Cardinals to 2-3 on the year, with all three losses coming against teams in the Big Ten. Illinois, which has four nationally-ranked singles players, easily defeated the Cardinals in all six singles matchups. Senior Patrick Thompson was the sole player to win a set before eventually falling 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 at No. 4 singles.
"You got to give credit to Illinois, they're a great team and they played well," Thompson said. "We just got to learn to capitalize more." The Cardinals didn't fare any better during doubles play.-áAt No. 1 doubles, fourth-ranked Thompson and Matt Baccarani lost 8-3, as did brothers Tony and Jarrod Epkey at No. 2 doubles. The No. 3 doubles pair of Joe Epkey and Joe Vallee lost 8-6.-á
"We just had a couple great opportunities the past couple of weeks and we let them slip away," Thompson said. "We need to keep at it and get back to the practice courts."
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