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WINONA, Minn. — It had been two weeks since the Saint Mary's University men's tennis team had competed, and Carleton made the Cardinals pay for their rustiness Friday evening, as the regionally ranked Knights handed SMU a 7-2 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at the Winona Tennis Center.

“We played some solid tennis against one of the top teams in the conference,” said SMU coach Jeff Halberg. “If we continue to play at the level we did tonight, we will finish out the season just fine.”

Michael Lunka (Eagan, Minn.) and Bobby Steingraeber continued their amazing season, collecting their 17th win in 18 matches at No. 1 doubles, beating the Knights' Austin Jiang and Paul Cooper 8-5. Gavin Smith (White Bear Lake, Minn.) picked up SMU's other win, outlasting Carleton's Paul Elbow 6-4, 7-5, 10-6 at No. 5 singles.

The Cardinals, who fall to 2-5 in MIAC play and 9-9 overall, are back in action on Friday, when the Cardinals step out of conference play for a 4 p.m. match at Northwestern in St. Paul, Minn.