THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - The Cal Lutheran men's tennis team continued its challenging schedule with a match against Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) No. 1 Trinity (Tex.) on Tuesday afternoon, but their upset bid came up short as they fell 6-3 at Poulson Tennis Center.

The Kingsmen got off to a great start at court No. 1 where Moises Cardenas and Jesse Knight took down the pair of Jordan Mayer and Aaron Skinner, 8-5, to capture the first point of the match. The Tigers, however, won the remaining doubles matches at No. 2 and No. 3 to take a 2-1 lead.

In singles competition, Cardenas continued to impress with a quick 6-4, 6-2 win at No. 1. Also picking up a win in singles play was Oliver Thornton who defeated Clayton Niess 6-4, 6-4 at No. 4. The Tigers claimed courts No. 2 and No. 5 and took a 4-3 lead with two matches remaining.

"I was really proud of how the guys played against the number one team in the nation today," head coach Mike Gennette said. "At one point the score was four matches to three and the remaining two matches were both in the third set. It actually could have gone either way."

Fergus Scott and Andrew Slater were battling at No. 2 and No. 6, respectively, keeping the Kingsmen upset hopes alive. Both players battled into a third set tiebreaker, but ultimately came up short and Trinity won the match 6-3.

"It's nice to see the camaraderie and great leadership that the team has," Gennette continued. "What they lack in experience at some of the positions, they more than make up for it in teamwork and attitude."

Cal Lutheran (4-6) will continue non-conference action at Poulson Tennis Center next Tuesday, Mar. 17 against Vassar (N.Y.) at 2:00 p.m.

Box Score: TU 6, CLU 3
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