KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The McKendree University men's tennis team saw its perfect start to the 2021-22 season halted here Sunday at The Plaza as the Bearcats suffered a hard-fought 5-2 loss to 25th-ranked Northwest Missouri State University.
 
Sunday's "Battle of the Bearcats" snapped a seven-match win streak for McKendree to open the season as McKendree fell to 7-1 on the season, while NWMSU improves to 5-3 on the season.
 
Prior to Sunday's match, McKendree had gotten off to its best start to a season in the school's Division II era (2012-present).
 
"I'm really proud of our team's effort against Top 25 Northwest Missouri State," McKendree head coach René Vidal said. "We are looking forward to the next opportunity and will keep improving on and off the court."
 
Sunday's match began with doubles and NWMSU would earn the doubles point after taking two of the three matches as they won 6-2 at the No. 2 spot and 6-3 at the No. 3 spot.
 
McKendree, though, would prevent a clean sweep in doubles by NWMSU as the Bearcats' No. 1 team of junior Leonardo Frederico (Tujucas-Santa Cantrina, Brazil/UniCesumar) and graduate student Boriss Kamdem (Ghent, Beligium/Tulsa) won their seventh straight match and improved to 9-1 on the season with a 6-1 win over the No. 43 nationally-ranked team of Andrea Zamurri and Franco Oliva.
 
Following the completion of doubles play, the teams turned their attention to singles play and McKendree would pick up its two points in match thanks to wins at No. 2 and No. 4 singles.
 
Kamdem would get one of McKendree's two points in the match as he picked up an impressive straight set win (6-1, 6-4) over Oliva, who is ranked 25th nationally in singles in Division II. With his win, Kamdem improved to 8-2 on the season in singles.
 
McKendree's other point in the match came at the No. 4 singles spot as sophomore Julappagari Anurag Reddy (Dubai, UAE/CBSE School Nationals) picked up a three set over Simon Birgerson. In the No. 4 singles match, Reddy lost the first set, 7-5, but came back to win the second set, 6-4 and then earned a 6-1 win in the third set.
 
Three other singles matches went to three sets on Sunday as No. 61st-ranked Frederico fell at No. 1 singles in three sets to nationally No. 8 ranked Zamurri, 1-6, 7-5, 6-3, while junior Lorenzo del Biondo (Pescora, Italy/Abraham Baldwin) fell in three sets at No. 5 singles to Mason Meier as Meier won the first set, 6-3, before del Biondo won the second set, 7-6 (7-4) and then Meier rallied to win the third set, 6-2 and freshman David Leon Mantilla (Lima, Peru/Colegio Parroquial Santa Rosa de Lima) fell 6-4, 6-7 (8-6), 6-4 to Fillippo Piranonmonte at the No. 6 spot.
 
McKendree will return to action on Saturday, March 26 as they host Rockhurst University for an 11 a.m. non-conference match at Triad High School in Troy, Ill.