BEAUMONT, Texas – Over the course of the past decade, the men's tennis programs at Lamar University and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi have built a strong rivalry – one that has consisted of numerous tournament finals appearances and down to the wire finishes – and Monday's showdown in Beaumont was no different. Unfortunately for the Red and White, Lamar came out on the short end of a 4-3 decision at the Thompson Family Tennis Center.
 
The Cardinals (12-11/3-1 SLC) had an uphill climb after dropping the doubles point, but Big Red responded by taking four of the six first sets when the two teams switched to singles play. Lamar held the momentum and grabbed a one-point lead after taking wins on courts 2 and 1, respectively. Sophomore Maxwell Lindstedt was the first off the court with his straight-sets victory at No. 2 singles. He bested A&M-Corpus Christi's Omar Suarez, 6-0, 6-4. He was followed moments later by Leon Nickel's 6-4, 6-1, victory over Nicholas Niox.
 
Big Red pushed its lead to 3-1 when sophomore Louis Drapeau defeated Matthieu Coignet, 6-1, 6-1, at the No. 5 position, but the Islanders responded with wins on the next two courts to tie the match at 3-3 with all attention placed on court No. 6.
 
Lamar's Stefano Chappuis took an early lead winning the first set on court 6 but the Islander's Josef Zapletal battled back to take the second forcing a third set. In the extra frame, Zapletal managed to snag an early lead and held off Chappuis.
 
The Cardinals will look to bounce back Saturday when they host UIW. The match against the league's other Cardinals is set for an 11 a.m. start from the Thompson Family Tennis Center.