???The comfortable confines of Western New York could not provide a winning atmosphere for the men's tennis team.
???Friday night, the Bulls (7-9, 1-3 Mid-American Conference) looked to end their losing streak against Ball State (10-8, 2-0 MAC) at the South Towns Tennis Center in Orchard Park. Buffalo couldn't handle the elements, however, falling to Ball State, 6-1. With the loss, the Bulls extended their skid to seven matches.
???Initially, the Bulls came out and grabbed the lead, earning the doubles point in the game.
???In the first doubles match, the duo of Buffalo sophomore Marcelo Mazzetto and junior Kirill Kolomyts defeated Eduardo Pavia and Jorge Rodriguez, 8-3. In the second matchup, the Cardinals responded. The twosome of Jose Perdomo and Zane Smith defeated senior Octavian Stane and sophomore Mitch Zenaty of the Bulls, 8-1.
???The lone doubles point came down to the third and final doubles match. The group of Buffalo freshmen Guilherme Smaniotto and Alex Kalinin defeated the Ball State duo of Shaun Bussert and Derek Carpenter, 9-7.
???That would be the only point that Buffalo would earn on the day.
???As singles play began, Ball State came back and responded.
???In the first singles matchup of the contest, Jose Perdomo of Ball State took down Mazzetto in the only match that didn't take straight sets. Perdomo defeated Mazzetto in the first set 6-4, but Mazzetto responded in the second set, defeating Perdomo 4-6. In the third set, Perdomo defeated Mazzetto and earned the match's point, 6-1.
???The following five singles matches weren't as close.
???The second match of the day set Ball State's Eduardo Pavia against Buffalo's Kolomyts. Pavia took down Kolomyts following a second-set tiebreaker, 6-4, 7-6 (4).
???In the following match, Cardinal Cliff Morrison defeated Kalinin, 6-4, 6-3. Morrison's victory put him at 13-3 on the season, the best record of any Cardinals player.
???Buffalo's hopes of earning their first victory in over a month ended in the following three singles matches.
???In the fourth event, Andres Monroy took down freshman Kristof Custers, 6-4, 6-0, while Jorge Rodriguez took down Stane in the fifth match, 6-2, 7-5.
???The following match was on par with the same suit as the five previous single matches. Ball State's Shaun Bussert defeated freshman Tiago Gandum of Buffalo, 6-1, 6-3.
???Buffalo has two matches left in the regular season portion of their schedule. The Bulls will play Northern Illinois, their final MAC opponent, on Sunday. Game time is 10 a.m.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
