DeKALB  — Men’s tennis went 0-2 in weekend matches to start Mid-American Conference play.

In the first meet, the team fell to Western Michigan 0-7 Saturday in Muncie, IN.

The Huskies went on to lose their fourth consecutive match over a two week span against Ball State Sunday.

NIU lost 2-5 in a match that was closer than what the score appeared, as three of the singles matches went to three sets.

Saturday: 0-7 loss to Western Michigan

First-years Mikko Malinen and Victor Spolidorio took the first doubles match when they defeated first-years Peter Kuszynski and Jack Randall 6-3, giving the Huskies their lone win of the day.

First-year David Pata and junior Bor Schweiger Muzar were defeated by juniors Jannik Opitz and Kennosuke Nouchi as the Broncos drew even in doubles play with a 2-6 win.

Seniors Eric Marbach and Erich Schuette were defeated by seniors Lenhard Haupt and Nick Schnobel 5-7 to give the Broncos the doubles point.

The Huskies went on to lose all six of their singles matches, however four of those matches went to three sets.

Marbach was defeated by Opitz after leading early going into the second set, 6-3, 2-6, 6-7. Pata was defeated by senior Matej Svjetlicic 4-6, 7-6, 5-7.

Muzar was defeated by Randall 3-6, 6-4, 2-6. Malinen was defeated by Kuszynski after leading early, 7-5, 4-6, 3-6.

NIU went on to drop the final two matches to give the Broncos a clean sweep of the meet.

Spolidorio was swept by Schnobel in both sets 2-6. Schuette was swept by Nouchi, 0-6, 1-6 to cap a 0-7 Western Michigan win over the Huskies. NIU’s record dropped to 8-8.

Sunday: 2-5 loss to Ball State

First-years Mikko Malinen and Victor Spolidorio were defeated by seniors Marko Guzina and Nemanja Guzina 2-6 to kick off couple’s play.

First-year David Pata and junior Bor Schweiger Muzar took the first victory of the day for the Huskies, defeating senior Tom Carney and sophomore Thibault De Negri 7-5 to draw even in doubles play.

Seniors Eric Marbach and Erich Schuette were defeated by sophomore Chris Adams and senior Conner Andersen 4-6, giving Ball State the point and an early 1-0 lead.

NIU would go on to win two of the singles matches.

Marbach had a strong comeback from Saturday’s match, defeating N. Guzina 7-5 in both sets. Muzar took the final win for NIU in three sets against De Nergi, 7-6, 6-7, 7-6.

Pata was defeated by M. Guzina in two sets, 4-6, 3-6. Malinen was defeated by Adams in three sets after leading early, 6-4, 4-6, 2-6 to give the Cardinals the 3-2 lead.

Junior Shao-Yu Yu was defeated by Anderson in three sets, 6-7, 6-3, 2-6 as Ball State pulled ahead 4-2. Spolidorio was defeated by Carney in two sets, 3-6, 5-7 to solidify the victory for the Cardinals.

The Huskies fell to the Cardinals 2-5, bringing their record below .500 at 8-9. They begin 0-2 in MAC play to kick off the conference schedule.

NIU will return to the court 1 p.m. Thursday against Binghamton in Rockford, IL.