By: Jake Timm (@GBJakeT)

DES MOINES, Iowa (GreenBayPhoenix.com) – Green Bay men's tennis traveled to face No. 29 Drake on its home court Friday night and gave the Bulldogs all it could handle before falling 4-3 in a back-and-forth match.

The Phoenix (10-7) found itself in a 2-0 hole early, but battled back and claimed two singles matches to make the score 3-2 before Drake (20-6) clinched the victory.

Freshman Florian Kraenzler (Puchheim, Germany) got Green Bay into the win column at No. 4 singles. Kraenzler dropped the first set 6-3, then stormed back to claim the second and third sets 7-6 (7-5) and 6-2, respectively.

After a Drake win at No. 6 singles made the score 3-1, sophomore Joshua Schramm (Brunsbuttel, Germany) extended the match with a win at No. 5 singles. Schramm also lost the first set, only to come back and claim sets two and three to secure the point and make it 3-2.

At that point in the match, Green Bay's No. 2 singles player, Leopold Gomez Islinger (Weiden, Germany), was engaged in a grueling match that saw the Phoenix junior claim the first set 7-5, and drop the second set 7-5. Drake's Matt Frost claimed the final set 6-3 to clinch the win for the Bulldogs.

Junior Howard Scott (Exeter, England) was locked in a battle of his own at the same time. Scott did eventually claim a 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 victory at No. 3 singles, but it came after the match had been clinched.

Green Bay senior Michael Tenzer (Neuried, Germany) came into the match ranked No. 110 in singles play by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. His opponent at the top singles spot, Alen Salibasic of Drake, came into the match ranked No. 39 in singles play. Salibasic got the better of the high-profile matchup, winning 6-3, 6-2.

For the Phoenix, this was the fourth nationally ranked opponent of the season, and the second consecutive foe nationally ranked by the ITA. Green Bay was coming off a 4-3 loss at No. 75 University of California-Irvine last week.

The Phoenix will remain in Des Moines, Iowa to face Georgia State Saturday at 10 a.m.

No. 29 Drake 4 – Green Bay 3

Singles

 

No. 1 (39)Alen Salibasic (DU) def. (110)Michael Tenzer (GB) 6-3, 6-2

No. 2 Matt Frost (DU) def. Leopold Gomez Islinger (GB) 5-7, 7-5, 6-3

No. 3 Howard Scott (GB) def. Ravi Patel (DU) 6-3, 5-7, 6-4

No. 4 Florian Kraenzler (GB) def. Calum MacGeoch (DU) 3-6, 7-6(7-5), 6-2

No. 5 Joshua Schramm (GB) def. Ben Stride (DU) 2-6, 7-5, 6-2

No. 6 Ben Mulis (DU) def. Joey Leto (GB) 4-6, 6-2, 6-3

Doubles

No. 1 Salibasic/Mulis (DU) def. Tenzer/Kraenzler (GB) 6-2

No. 2 Scott/Leto (GB) def. Frost/Patel (DU) 6-1

No. 3 Bayo Philips/Stride (DU) def. Michael Tebon/Islinger (GB) 7-6(7-3)

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