ITHACA, N.Y. — Looking for its second win against a top-30 team in as many days, the men's tennis team started off strong by securing the double point before ultimately suffering a 4-2 loss to Northwestern on Sunday at Reis Tennis Center.
 
Ranked 26th in the country by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, Northwestern (7-5) won three of the four singles matches decided in straight sets. Mihir Kumar then clinched the match with a three-set victory at the No. 4 position.
 
Cornell (4-5) — which enter ranked 64th by the ITA, but figured to move up after Saturday's victory over No. 27 Penn State — took an early lead with five-time All-Ivy League senior Sam Fleck teaming with sophomore Colin Sinclair to win the No. 2 doubles match, 6-2, and sophomores Bernardo Casares Rosa and Chris Vrabel teaming up for a victory at the No. 1 position.
 
Casares Rosa then notched the Big Red's second point with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Logan Staggs in No. 3 singles. Vrabel's match at No. 5 was abandoned after Northwestern had already clinched the match.
 
Cornell wraps up a three-match home stand at 1 p.m. Sunday, March 1, when it plays host to Old Dominion.
 
No. 26 NORTHWESTERN 4, No. 64 CORNELL 2
Sunday's results; at Reis Tennis Center; Ithaca, N.Y.
Singles
1. #96 Sam Shropshire (N) def. Sam Fleck, 6-1, 6-2
2. #64 Strong Kirchheimer (N) def. Stefan Vinti, 6-4, 7-6
3. Bernardo Casares Rosa (C) def. Logan Staggs, 7-5, 6-3
4. Mihir Kumar (N) def. Colin Sinclair, 6-3, 1-6, 6-3
5. Chris Vrabel (C) vs. Alp Horoz, (DNF)
6. Fedor Baev (N) def. Dylan Brown, 6-3, 6-3
Doubles
1. Casares Rosa/Vrabel (C) def. Baev/Kirchheimer, 6-3
2. Fleck/Sinclair (C) def. Shropshire/Alex Pasareanu, 6-2
3. Horoz/Kumar (N) def. Quoc-Daniel Nguyen/Vinti, 6-4