ANGOLA, Ind. -- The Trine University men's tennis team was defeated by visiting Hope College, the visiting Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) opponent came up with a 9-0 victory.

The Thunder came close to a victory in the No. 3 doubles match. Senior Isaac Everitt (Scottsburg, Ind. / Scottsburg) and sophomore Eric Gaby (Syracuse, Ind. / Fairfield) came within two dropping the match 8-6.

In the singles portion of the contest, two Trine players came just shy of forcing third sets. In the No. 4 match freshman Ryan Smith (Peru, Ind. / Peru) forced a tiebreaker in the second set but fell with scores of 6-2, 7-6(7-4). Sophomore Alex Mullet (Westfield, Ind. / Westfield) nearly did the same, but dropped the match 6-3, 7-5.

The team falls to 11-5 overall and 3-2 in MIAA play. They will play again on Tuesday, April 20 when they travel to face Calvin University for a 4 p.m. contest.