CLEVELAND - On a rainy Saturday afternoon, the Franciscan men's tennis team played some of their best season of the year, despite the 9-0 loss to Case Western Reserve University, the No. 15 Division III men's tennis program in the nation.

The Barons faced tough competition on all three courts as doubles play commenced. Sophomore RJ Watson and junior Connor Jooste returned serves well in an 8-2 loss; their two registered games came on service breaks. Inaccurate volleys kept the No. 2 doubles team from adding additional games to their total; nevertheless, the duo looks in top form as NCAA competition looms.

At No. 1 doubles, juniors Jarek Sulak and John Gallagher responded to their toughest competition of the season with unprecedented play. The pair was down 3-2 early, after both Barons held serve; they faced a deuce point in the sixth game but couldn't even the score at 3-3. The pro set got away from Franciscan soon after, but not without competition in nearly every game.

Senior David Freytag and freshman Jack Galla played smart tennis on court three. Their 8-2 loss was characterized by deep crosscourt groundstrokes and dynamic volleys. The team captain and his partner raised their game to that of their opponent and kept games competitive with points punctuated by opportunities to finish at the net.

After all Baron doubles team came off their courts with an 8-2 loss, the singles play took the courts. Sulak faced all he could handle at No. 1 singles. He made his opponent earn every point of the match despite the 6-0, 6-0 loss, in a match highlighted by a 54-shot rally.

Gallagher had two points to go up 3-1 in his first set at No. 2 singles, but his opponent's quality groundstrokes kept him from capitalizing on the opportunity. He kept his backhands consistent in a 6-2, 6-1 loss.

Aggressive play typified Galla's No. 6 singles match on the far court. The freshman responded to his opponent's powerful groundstrokes with depth and persistence but came up short as the match played out, 6-2, 6-0.

After Freytag surrendered a 6-1, 6-1 No. 3 singles loss which saw the team captain rip a number of winners early despite being outplayed down the stretch, eyes turned to court four, where Watson erased his opponent's 5-2 lead in the first set. Behind a clutch hold and a service break, the sophomore found himself serving down 5-4. Despite a series of punishing first serves, Watson couldn't capitalize on his lead in the game and gave up the set 6-4, and the second 6-0.

Jooste's vastly improved serve went a long way toward making his No. 5 singles match a competitive one. The junior shook off impatient groundstrokes several times over the course of his match, before going down 6-2, 6-1. 

The Barons played well in the loss, an encouraging trend given that the Barons next suit up for the first round of NCAA action on Friday, May 12; the location and time will be announced by the NCAA on Monday, May 8.