Trojans Drop Spring Opener at Campbellsville

CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. – The Taylor University men's tennis team opened the spring season on the road Friday, falling 7-0 to Campbellsville at the Kelly Hall Tennis Complex. The Trojans drop to 2-4 on the season, while the Tigers improve to 2-1.

 

Taylor's lineup featured a mix of familiar faces from the fall along with a few season debuts. Ian Helfert and Matthew Williams both made their first appearances of the 2025-26 campaign, while Josh Clegg played his first singles match of the year at the No. 5 flight.

 

The Tigers took all three doubles matches to secure the doubles point. Campbellsville's Noah Grossman and Marco Hoerl defeated Tyler Lane and Graham Beukelman 6-2 at No. 1, Bjorn Faber and Derrick Namanya topped Williams and Helfert 6-3 at No. 2, and Hidde Van Der Wilt and David Scheiermann beat Joseph Harper and Andrew Roth 6-2 at No. 3.

 

Campbellsville carried that momentum into singles play, sweeping all six flights. The closest match of the day came at No. 3, where Beukelman provided Taylor's best individual performance. After dropping the first set 7-5, the sophomore responded by taking the second set 4-6 to force a decider, but Grossman edged him in a third-set tiebreaker 7-6 (7-5) to close out the match. Lane competed well at No. 1 against Alex Martin before dropping a 6-4, 6-3 decision, and Harper fell 6-2, 6-3 to Juan Ochoa at No. 2. The Tigers' Namanya, Fabricio Mesia, and Hoerl earned straight-set victories at the fourth, fifth, and sixth flights, respectively.

 

Despite the final score, the Trojans showed fight in several spots, particularly in Beukelman's extended battle at No. 3 and Lane's competitive sets at the top of the lineup.

 

TU returns to action Monday when it hosts IU East for a 6 p.m. match at the Taylor Tennis Complex.