WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's men's tennis team (4-11, 0-6 MIAC) battled on its home courts Sunday afternoon but came up short in a 6-1 loss to Saint John's (3-8. 2-4 MIAC) in conference action.
Despite the final score, the Cardinals (4-10, 0-5 MIAC) found a bright spot at the top of the lineup, where Gavin Pratt delivered the team's lone victory in impressive fashion.
At No. 1 singles, Pratt was in control early, taking the opening set 6-1 and holding a 2-0 lead in the second before his opponent was forced to retire, securing the win for Saint Mary's.
The rest of singles play featured competitive moments, including a tightly contested match at No. 3. Michael Johnson bounced back after dropping the first set to force a second-set tiebreak, but ultimately fell 6-2, 7-6.Â
The Johnnies gained the early advantage by sweeping all three doubles matches. The Cardinals' closest opportunity came at No. 2 doubles, where the duo of Zak Farley and Michael Johnson pushed their opponents before falling 7-6.
Saint Mary's continued to fight throughout singles, with several matches showing resilience despite the outcome.
They look ahead to their next matchup on the road this Tuesday, April 14 at Macalester for a 5:00 p.m. match.
