LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Daemen College men's tennis team closed out its four-game road trip through the states of Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky with a 5-4 loss to host Bellarmine University here today.

Daemen, which won two of four matches during the trip, dropped to 5-13 on the year. Bellarmine snapped a three-match losing streak and improved to 4-8 on the year. BU is a member of the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Valley Conference and was voted fifth in the GLVC East Division preseason poll.

Bellarmine opened the slate by winning two of the three doubles matches. Senior Jose Legarreta (Madrid, Spain) teamed up with classmate Zachary Kuo (Elizabethtown, Ky.) to post an 8-3 win over sophomore David Gonzalez Villegas (Pereira, Colombia/Liceo Frances de Pereira) and freshmen Fabian Wilde (Crimmitschau, Germany/Julius-Motteler) at No. 1 doubles. The hosts went up 2-0 after senior Alex Swords (Darien, Conn.) and junior Matthew Momper (Cincinnati, Ohio) outlasted the Daemen tandem of sophomore Justin Milner (Itahaca, N.Y./Ithaca) junior Mark Veitengruber (Rockford, Mich./Rockford) at No. 2 doubles by a score of 9-7.

Daemen got on the board at No. 3 doubles, as sophomore Andrew LeMar (North Tonawanda, N.Y./North Tonawanda) and senior Adam Kerr (Penfield, N.Y./McQuaid Jesuit) posted an 8-6 victory over sophomores Lauren de Boeck (Haaltert, Belgium) and L.J. Allara (Pikeville, Ky.).

Bellarmine opened a 4-1 lead after Legarreta defeated Gonzalez Villegas and No. 1 singles (6-1, 6-4) and Kuo downed Veitengruber at No. 2 singles (6-1, 6-0). Legarreta improved to 12-5 in singles play with the win.

Daemen made things interesting by posting wins at No. 3 and No. 4 singles. Wilde improved to 4-2 on the year at No. 3 singles. He lost the first set to Swords (3-6), before rallying for back-to-back 7-5 wins—saving two match points in the second set. Sophomore Ricardo Ruiz Martinez (Valenca, Spain/American International College) followed with a straight set (6-3, 6-2) win for Daemen at No. 4 singles over Momper. Ruiz Martinez is now 4-1 on the year at No. 4 singles.

Bellarmine secured the win after de Boeck outlasted Milner 7-6, 2-6, 6-2 at No. 5 singles. Daemen picked up the final point of the match at No. 6 singles, as senior John LeMar (North Tonawanda, N.Y./North Tonawanda) defeated freshman Andrew Jones (Charleston, W.V.) 5-7, 7-5, 1-0 (6).

Daemen is idle until March 24 when it opens East Coast Conference play by hosting the University of the District of Columbia.

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