ARKADELPHIA, ARK. – The No. 38 East Central University men's tennis team fell to No. 26 Ouachita Baptist in a tight 4-5 in the first Great American Conference match of the 2016 season.

Box Score

The Tigers (7-9, 0-1 GAC) fell behind 0-3 after the doubles matches and fought back during singles play.

ECU took four of the six singles matches, but still fell 4-5.  Junior Erik Eldagsen was one of the first to finish with a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 4 singles over David Carbo.  Sophomore Marc Lerch added a 6-2, 6-1 win over Jason Mechali at No. 5 singles, while sophomore Adria Abella defeated Maciej Braciszweicz 6-4, 6-1 at No. 3 singles.

Sophomore Sergio Espias was the final member of the team to earn a win at singles, taking a 7-6, 2-6, 6-2 over Victor Oliveira at No. 1 singles.

The Tigers will remain on the road for the next GAC match, as they are set to face Oklahoma Baptist, Thursday, April 7 at 2 p.m. in Shawnee, Okla.