The Ball State University men's tennis team escaped from Terre Haute with a win Sunday.
Ball State defeated Indiana State University 5-2, despite the winless Sycamores coming within two third-set tie breakers of a victory.
"I expected a close match," coach Bill Richards said. "They are a better team than their record indicates."
The 0-10 Sycamores claimed wins in No. 2 and 4 singles. If it wasn't for third-set wins by senior Jose Perdomo and freshman Derek Carpenter, Ball State would have lost.
Perdomo rallied to win in No. 1 singles 7-6, 4-6, 6-2. Carpenter, who hasn't seen much singles action this season, won the final two sets 6-3, 6-0, after losing the first one 4-6.
"We had guys who don't regularly play step up and they did a nice job for us," Richards said.
The main reason why the Cardinals had to use their bench was because sophomore Eduardo Pavia returned to his home in Puerto Rico for his sister's wedding this weekend. Pavia has been alternating between No. 1 and 2 singles all year, and defeated Big Ten Conference opponents earlier in the season.
"We are quite a different team in both singles and doubles without [Pavia] in the lineup," Richards said. "Fortunately, it all worked out well."
Ball State swept all three matches for the doubles point. Freshmen Cliff Morrison and Andres Monroy won their singles matches in straight sets giving Ball State all the points they needed for the victory.
The Cardinals are 8-6 on the season with the majority of their conference schedule coming in April. The Cardinals against Indiana teams this season are now 5-1.
Ball State heads to Boise, Idaho, later for an invitational tournament this weekend.
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