INDIANAPOLIS – The IU Indianapolis men's tennis team dropped a 6-1 decision to Xavier on Sunday afternoon at West Indy Racquet Club.
 
The Jaguars battled throughout the afternoon, highlighted by a strong performance at No. 3 singles from Eli Mercer. The Indy senior earned the team's lone point of the day with a hard-fought 6-2, 4-6, 10-4 victory over Xavier's Alex Kotarski, clinching the point in a decisive third-set.
 
Xavier secured the doubles point with wins at No. 1 and No. 2 doubles. The pairing of Konner Gunwall and Brandon Pham fell 6-4 at the top spot, while Owen Nguyen and Cameron Kryscio were edged by the same score at No. 2. The No. 3 tandem of Mercer and Pumiphat Sukkho was leading 5-3 when the match was left unfinished.
 
In singles play, Konner Gunwall dropped a 6-3, 6-2 decision to Nick Herdoiza at No. 1, while Owen Nguyen pushed Max Pettingell to a tight second set before falling 6-0, 7-5 at No. 2. Cameron Kryscio was narrowly defeated in a first-set tiebreak at No. 4 before falling 7-6 (7-0), 6-3. Jai Dutta battled in both sets at No. 5 but came up short 7-6 (3-0), 7-5, and Brandon Pham rounded out the lineup with a 6-4, 6-0 loss at No. 6.
 
The Jaguars will look to bounce back as they travel to Notre Dame on Sunday, March 1.