RIPON, Wisconsin – The Ripon men's tennis program opened play at home in 2024 on Saturday, falling 9-0 to Wisconsin Lutheran and 8-1 to Wartburg inside the Willmore Center.
 
In the morning match against Wisconsin Lutheran (2-6), Ripon (0-8) started in a 2-0 hole, forfeiting doubles court three and the sixth singles court due to only having five available players.
 
WLC swept the two doubles courts, dropping only five total games in the process, to lead 4-0 heading into singles.
 
The Warriors clinched the match soon after with a 6-3, 3-0 (ret.) victory on court five.
 
However, Ripon would not lie down, winning two first sets on the remaining four courts. After WLC won in straight sets on court four, the Warriors forced third-set tiebreaks on courts one and two.
 
Wisconsin Lutheran closed out the match with a pair of third set victories on courts one and two, coupled with a straight-set win on the third line.
 
In the afternoon match against Wartburg (2-4), Ripon (0-9), the Red Hawks again conceded a singles and doubles point due to availability of players. The Knights shut out Ripon on court two in doubles, but Caleb Sippel and Ty Rondestvedt teamed up for an 8-5 win on the top line as Ripon trailed 3-1 heading into singles play.
 
All five first sets went to the Knights in singles play – Wartburg clinched the match with a pair of 6-0, 6-0 wins on courts four and five. It added two more straight-set wins on courts one and two before finishing up the shutout on court three.
 
NEXT UP: Ripon finishes its weekend on Sunday (February 18) as the Red Hawks host Martin Luther at 1 p.m. inside the Willmore Center.
 
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