Sophomore Rin Goda jumps into the air during match against Thomas More University.
Courtesy | Kenneth Gaudet.
The Hillsdale men’s tennis team closed out Great Midwest Athletic Conference play with a 4-2 loss to Walsh University April 18. The Chargers finished the regular season with an overall record of 9-9 and 4-4 in the G-MAC.
Short-handed, Hillsdale was forced to forfeit at No. 3 doubles and No. 6 singles, giving Walsh two automatic points before play began.
Despite that disadvantage, the Chargers competed closely in doubles. Junior Ellis Klanduch and sophomore Sam Plys earned a 6-3 win on court No. 1. Sophomore Alex Cordero Lopez and freshman Jackson Clements fell 6-2 on court No. 2, however, allowing Walsh to secure the doubles point.
“We were already down before the match even started, so we were the underdogs,” Clements said. “We had nothing to lose, and all the pressure was on them. We almost beat them, which shows just how good our team is.”
Needing four wins in five singles matches, Hillsdale found early momentum. Klanduch picked up a 6-3, 6-4 win on court No. 2, and Cordero Lopez followed with a 6-4, 6-1 victory on court No. 3 to keep the Chargers within reach.
“I have the confidence in my game to know what I want to do on court and have the capability to execute it,” Cordero Lopez said. “My best tennis comes out when I am enjoying myself on court, and having fun is the most important thing.”
Walsh clinched the match on singles courts No. 1 and 5, where Plys fell 7-6, 6-4 and Clements lost 6-3, 6-3, respectively. Sophomore Rintaro Goda led 7-5, 2-1 on court No. 4 when play was halted.
“I thought we played pretty well overall considering the circumstances,” head coach Keith Turner said. “It should give us confidence going into the G-MAC Tournament. Hopefully I’ll have a couple guys back in the lineup by then.”
Hillsdale will look to reset as it heads to Owensboro, Kentucky to face Walsh again in the quarterfinals of the G-MAC Tournament April 23.
“Hopefully, we can learn from our matches this week and apply it to our matches next week,” Clements said.
