Kenyon College Athletics

ORLANDO, Fla. -- The Kenyon College men's tennis team wrapped up a grueling slate of seven matches in eight days at the USTA National Campus against No. 2-ranked Washington University in St. Louis. It was the fifth time over the seven-game stretch that the No. 23-ranked Owls matched up against another team ranked in the International Tennis Association's (ITA) top 25. Kenyon won two of those bouts against ranked opponents, but a 7-2 loss to the WashU Bears, who improved to 9-2, dropped the Owls' record to 5-8.

The Bears took the top two doubles contests to grab an early edge, but Kenyon's No. 3 duo of Thomas Kallarakal and Rishil Kondapaneni earned a hard-fought win. The pair won 8-7 after prevailing in the tiebreaker to put a point on the board for the Owls.

However, the momentum did not carry over into singles play, as Kenyon could only secure one win in six matches. Paulo Pocasangre Kreling prevailed in the No. 4 singles bout, winning in straight sets. The first-year improved to 9-5 this season with his third consecutive singles victory after the 6-4, 6-2 decision.

Despite a few close matches, the Owls could not add another point as WashU clinched the 7-2 win. Kallarakal fell 6-2, 6-3 in the No. 1 spot, while Eric Zhang fell 6-2, 6-3 at No. 5. Kondapaneni endured a closely-contested defeat in the No. 2 match after losing 7-5, 7-6 (7-4). 

Luis Andres Platas and Rakkan Audeh went the full three sets in their Nos. 3 and 6 singles bouts, but neither could come out on top. Platas won the first set 6-4 before falling 6-2, 6-3 in the No. 3 match. Audeh bounced back from a 6-2 loss with a 6-3 win to force a third set, but he fell 6-2 in the tiebreaking contest.

The Owls will have a chance to rest up with an extended 13-day break before their next contest on Wednesday, March 29. However, the schedule does not get much easier as Kenyon will head to Denison University (12-1), the No. 10-ranked team in the ITA poll, for the Owls' North Coast Athletic Conference opener. The dual is scheduled for a 4 p.m. start in Granville, Ohio.