The No. 10 University of Redlands men's tennis team made the short trip to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges on Friday afternoon for a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) match against the second-ranked Stags. In a competitive battle, the Bulldogs fought until the bitter end but missed out on the upset in a 2-7 decision.
After the Stags won the first two doubles matches, Redlands pulled one back with an 8-4 victory by the No. 3 duo of seniors Parker Wilson (Carlsbad, CA) and Tom Suchodolski (Amherst, MA).
Trailing 1-2, Redlands regained the momentum with sophomore Chase Lipscomb's (Irvine, CA) impressive 6-4, 6-2 showing at the top singles slot.
However, CMS rolled to a 4-2 lead with wins at Nos. 2 and 3, forcing the Bulldogs in a must-win scenario at every remaining position. Suchodolski battled to a second-set tiebreaker at No. 5, while senior Jake Ly (Torrance, CA) forced a third set at the No. 4 slot. Unfortunately, neither match went the Bulldogs' way, resulting in the team's first conference loss of the season.
Redlands (12-5, 4-1 SCIAC) looks to bounce back on Saturday, April 8, when it hosts Chapman University on Senior Day. First serve on Verdieck Courts is set for 10 a.m.