CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. — The Wabash College men's tennis team continued a challenging early-season stretch against nationally ranked opponents, dropping a 7-0 decision to fifth-ranked Case Western Reserve University on Friday afternoon at the Collett Tennis Center.

The loss came one week after the Little Giants faced top-ranked Denison University and marked the second of three consecutive matches against teams ranked in the top 15 of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Division III men's tennis poll.

Case Western Reserve secured the doubles point by winning two of the three matches. The Spartans opened the day with a 6-1 victory at No. 1 doubles, while the No. 2 pairing was decided by a tiebreaker, with Case Western prevailing 7-6 after a 7-0 tiebreak. Wabash earned its lone match win of the day at No. 3 doubles, where Matthew Haas and Edmon Neto posted a 6-4 victory.

In singles play, the visiting Spartans won all six matches to close out the sweep. Several contests were tightly contested, including the No. 2 singles match, where Case Western's JT Bilski edged Wabash's Cole Shifferly 7-6 in the second set, winning the tiebreaker 12-10 after taking the opening set 6-3.

Another close battle came at No. 6 singles, where Vittorio Bona forced a third-set super tiebreak after evening the match with a 6-4 second-set win. Case Western's Marko McRae ultimately claimed the point with a 10-7 decision in the match tiebreak.

Wabash also faced strong efforts throughout the lineup, but Case Western collected straight-set victories at Nos. 1, 3, 4 and 5 singles to secure the 7-0 final.

The Little Giants return to action Saturday, hosting 13th-ranked Kenyon College at 11 a.m. at the Collett Tennis Center in a North Coast Athletic Conference matchup.