Claremont, CA - The No. 24-ranked N.C. Wesleyan men's tennis team faced a tough challenge on Wednesday afternoon, falling 6-1 to undefeated No. 8 Bowdoin at the Pauley Tennis Complex in California.

The Battling Bishops secured an early highlight in doubles play, as the duo of Albert Sitwell and Luca Knese earned a 6-4 victory at No. 1 doubles. However, Bowdoin responded with wins at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles to claim the opening point.

In singles action, Wesleyan's Bohdan Zhylchuk picked up the Bishops' lone win with a hard-fought 6-3, 7-6(7) victory at No. 3 singles. The Polar Bears controlled the rest of the match, winning five of the six singles contests in straight sets.

Luca Knese fell at No. 1 singles to Mark Kneiss, 6-2, 6-1, while Diego Segovia battled at No. 2 but ultimately dropped a 7-5, 7-6(4) decision to Jackson Codd. Albert Sitwell (No. 4) and Rodrigo Montes de Oca (No. 6) each fell in straight sets, while Shori Nishizoe forced a third-set tiebreak at No. 5 but came up short against Kiran Garapati.

The Bishops will look to bounce back against Babson as NCWU continues its West Coast trip on Thursday.