MONROE — Playing in 15-mile per hour winds, the Cheesemakers dropped just their second match of the season to Oregon 7-0 on Tuesday, May 2.

“We dropped all of our matches tonight against Oregon, which I think caught a lot of us a bit off guard,” Monroe head coach Matt Bordner said. “I thought on paper we matched up decent with Oregon, but you have to give a lot of credit to the Oregon players, as they took care of business across the board. I think we let the wind get the best of us in some of matches, and need to tighten up on some things mentally.”

The wind played a large factor in matches. If a player’s shot went with the wind, they either sailed deep or had extra power, depending on racket angle. However, an opponent’s drop shots would die immediately or bounce back toward the net. If a player’s shot went against the wind, it caught up in the air and came back over the net on the player’s own side. Many players tossed the ball up to serve multiple times, as the ball would travel in the wind.

The No. 3 singles match between Gavin Eckerman and Samuel Halverson went three sets, but Eckerman fell 10-5. The remaining Cheesemakers fell in straight sets. 

“No. 1 doubles and No. 3 singles were the tightest matches, with both probably being matches we wish we could have some shots back in,” Bordner said. “I think No. 3 doubles also had some opportunities to flip their match, too. We see Oregon again on Saturday at the Verona quad, so it’ll be fun to see how we can improve on some things to hopefully get a better result.”