As the final doubles point was still in play against the University of Washington on Sunday, Bret Berryman got caught up in the action of his own match.
When Berryman yelled "Come on" before the point was done, their Washington opponents argued to the referee that Berryman's outburst disrupted play. After a 10-minute break, the referee sided with the Huskies and Ball State lost the match in a tiebreaker, 9-8 (10-8).
"We lost [the match] after we won it," a frustrated coach Bill Richards said.
The Cardinals dropped both meets of the weekend to the University of California-Santa Barbara (4-3) and No. 37 Washington (7-0).
Ball State came off a two-match winning streak entering play with the Gauchos on Saturday. With quick No. 1 and No. 3 doubles victories, the Cardinals fought five out of six singles matches to three sets. Eduardo Pavia at No. 2 and Berryman at No. 3 singles spots scored wins, but these were not enough to clinch a Ball State victory.
"We didn't cash in on opportunities," Richards said. "We controlled the match and didn't close it out. They are a good team, but we could have won and probably should have won [the meet]."
Despite the loss, Ball State recovered Sunday as the tandem of Jose Perdomo and Jorge Rodriguez took a 8-6 victory at No. 1 doubles. However, after the referee's decision in Berryman's match, the Cardinals dropped all six singles points.
"The call in my match is just collegiate tennis," Berryman said. "We came out ready to go [Sunday]. Unfortunately, so did they."
Moving to 3-5, Ball State is paralleling its exact record at this point last season, where it was a runner-up at the Mid-American Conference tournament.
With the recent losses in mind, Richards said, he was disappointed with his team's spotty performance this weekend and so far this season.
"I don't have a magic formula," Richards said. "Guys just have to get better."
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