The University of Washington men’s tennis team lost a conference match 4-2 to No. 45 Michigan on April 5 at Quillian Tennis Stadium in Seattle. The defeat leaves the Huskies with an overall record of 8-13 and a Big Ten record of 2-7 for the season.
This match is significant as it affects the team’s standing within the Big Ten and sets up their next challenges against Penn State and Ohio State. The outcome also reflects adjustments made by both teams, including lineup changes due to injuries.
In doubles play, Michigan opted not to start its No. 10 ranked duo, instead splitting them for this matchup. This strategy allowed Washington’s Soham Purohit and Brett Pearson to win at No. 1 doubles, followed by Stephane Kamendje and Rohan Belday clinching another point at No. 3 doubles, giving the Huskies an early lead heading into singles matches.
During singles competition, Nikola Plavsic started his fifth match at No. 6 in place of Daniel Bien, who was sidelined with a lower body injury. Both Purohit and Kamendje faced ranked opponents—Purohit against Max Dahlin (No.10) and Kamendje against Bjorn Swenson (No.86)—and were defeated in straight sets by their higher-ranked competitors.
Hyeonseok Seo managed to secure a win after forcing a third set, leveling the score for Washington temporarily at two apiece before Michigan won two consecutive matches to seal their victory with a final scoreline of 4-2. Rohan Belday’s singles match remained unfinished as he trailed in his third set when play concluded.
Looking ahead, Washington will travel next weekend for matches against Penn State on April 10 and Ohio State on April 12.
