The men’s tennis team lost 8-1 to Bates this past Saturday in Lewiston, Maine. Bates, coming off tough losses in the ITA Invitational and at MIT in the past two weeks, swept the singles matches, while the stellar doubles tandem of Paul Gerdes ’09 and Alejandro Alvarado ’09 posted the Cards’ lone win, an 8-4 victory at second doubles.

In singles, Mike Frank ’08 fought hard at the third position, taking the early lead with a 7-5 victory in his first set. Frank’s opponent, however, took the second set 6-1 and defeated Frank 10-7 in a third set tiebreak. Frank also had a close match at third doubles, where he and his partner Max Schenkein ’08 lost their 10-game pro set in an 8-9 heartbreaker.

“It’s hard losing,” said Matt O’Connell ’09. “But all we can do is keep playing and look back on the fall competition as a way to prepare for the spring and work on our faults. The fact that we competed already puts us in a better position to win in the spring.”

At first singles, tri-captain Tallen Todorovich ’07 fell 3-6, 1-6. Bates overpowered the Cardinal singles lineup as O’Connell, Jaafar Rizvi ’09, Paul Gerdes ’09, and Graham Immerman ’09 all failed to win a set.

The loss brings the team’s season record to 2-2 without factoring in performances at the ITA and Wheaton Invitationals.

The Cardinals have one more match left on their fall schedule: they face off against Bentley College in Boston on October 12.

“While the fall is not our prime time, we still would like to end on high note,” Frank said. “It’s important for us to focus on the spring and not worry too much about our fall record, but we would like to win our last one.”

The Division II Bentley Falcons welcome the Cardinals to Boston next weekend. The Falcons stand at 3-1 on the season, including impressive 9-0 sweeps of both Le Moyne College and Pace College. The Cards defeated Bentley in convincing fashion last year. While on paper the Falcons might appear the superior team, Wesleyan is motivated to finish their fall on a high note.

“The fall tennis season is so short, really a blur, but we’ve learned as we’ve gone along,” O’Connell said. “People assumed new positions on the team and had to adjust through playing. Our match record does not reflect our talent. We have the capability, barring injury, to win NESCAC matches. First we have to beat Bentley and then we’ll look to the spring.”