McLean County Times

The Illinois Wesleyan University men's tennis team faced a narrow defeat against Wartburg College in a neutral site match on Sunday, September 15. The contest concluded with a score of 4-3 in favor of Wartburg, marking the season opener for both teams. With this loss, IWU's record stands at 0-1, while Wartburg begins their season at 1-0.

Illinois Wesleyan struggled initially, losing the doubles portion of the match. However, they made a significant effort to recover during the singles competition by securing victories in the top three positions. Junior Ian Turnbull from Bloomington clinched victory in his match with scores of 6-3 and 7-5. Sophomore Thad Dillow from Effingham succeeded in his debut appearance at No. 2 singles with two sets of 6-4 each. Senior Zeke Cross from Springfield won his match at No. 3 singles after a tiebreaker first set of 7-6 (1) followed by a second set win of 6-1.

Despite these individual successes, IWU was unable to secure another victory and ultimately fell short with an overall score of 4-3 against Wartburg.

The Titans will next participate in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Regional tournament held in St. Louis, Missouri from September 20 to September 22.