The Binghamton men’s tennis team fell to No. 1 seed Western Michigan over the weekend in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament. The fourth-seeded Bearcats (13-9, 4-3 MAC) looked to return to the finals for the second straight year, but were defeated by a Western Michigan (19-5, 6-1 MAC) squad that has dominated MAC competition all year. The loss ended BU’s season.
Despite being disappointed by the loss, Binghamton assistant coach James Hignett believes the underclassmen can certainly learn a thing or two from being knocked out early.
“I think they can learn about how important the little things are and how when you add them all up they can make a big difference,” Hignett said. “The right attitude and work ethic goes a really long way.”
Binghamton defeated Western Michigan at home earlier in the season, which proved to be the Broncos’ only conference loss. Western Michigan, however, won both matches played on neutral courts.
After winning the doubles point, momentum was in Western Michigan’s favor for the remainder of the match. Senior Sid Hazarika and freshman Ludovico Cestarollo teamed up to win the first doubles match, 6-2, but WMU rallied to win second and third doubles.
“We fought hard, but there were too many unforced errors, giving away a couple of needless breaks,” Hignett said. “We didn’t execute. When it was important, the other team did a good job of being a little more aggressive and decisive.”
The Bearcats were unable to overcome the 1-0 deficit, as Western Michigan won three of the first four singles courts to finish with a 4-1 victory.
Senior Eliott Hureau, BU’s only singles player to win Friday, capped off his last match as a Bearcat with a 6-2, 2-6, 6-1 victory. He amassed 56 wins in his BU career.
“I think it was a really good effort with what was going on around him,” Hignett said. “It was definitely a positive that he can take away. It’s good to go out on a high note.”