COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. — For Saint Mary's University men's tennis coach, his Caerdinals earned an A for effort Saturday afternoon.
 
And, Halberg noted, a bounce here-or-there, and the end result could have bene much different.
 
Saint John's took advantage of a quick start — winning all three doubles matches — and never looked back in dealing the Cardinals a 7-2 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback.
 
"The guys were in a great battle today," said Halberg. "We had to some inclredlby great tennis played. Aside from our wins, Gabe (Graves) came incredibly close at No. 5 singles and our No. 2 and No. 3 doubles played very well.
 
"Things could have gone our way with a little luck."
 
SJU led 3-0 after the three doubles matches, but it certainly wasn't easy, getting an 8-5 win at No. 2 and an 8-7 (3) win at No. 3.
 
Saint Mary's picked up wins by Josh Janssen at No. 4 singles and Reilly Fredell (Colorado Springs, Colo.) at No. 6 — with Fredell outlasting SJU's Mike Krasowski 6-2, 6-7 (8), 11-9. Graves also went three sets at No. 5 singles, but was not as fortunate as Fredell, falling 6-4, 3-6, 11-9.
 
The Cardinals 1-4 MIAC, 3-5 overall) are right back in action on Sunday, returning home to the Winona Tennis Center for a 3:30 p.m. conference showdown against Macalester.