KANSAS CITY, Mo.- The Western Illinois men's tennis team won its conference opener by defeating IUPUI, 4-0, at the Plaza Tennis Center.

"Today was a good win and the right way to start off league play," said Western Illinois head coach Michael Hunt. "We struggled a little with closing out the match. Now we're focusing on UMKC. They'll be a tough test four us, but we look forward to the challenge."

The Leathernecks (6-5, 1-0 The Summit League) opened the match up by taking the doubles point from the Jaguars (2-14, 0-2 The Summit League). The No. 2 doubles team of senior Martin Boström (Stockholm, Sweden/Varmdo Gymnasium/Missouri Valley) and junior Sean Ragee-Nelson (Decatur, Ill./MacArthur) cruised past IUPUI's E.J. Dechow and Jesus Diaz, 8-2, to move their record to 5-0 this spring. Senior Michael Tiu (Naperville, Ill./Central) and freshman Francisco Ortiz (Porto Algre, Brazil/Colegio Unificado Iquatemi) defeated Jorge Yunes and Blake Powers, 8-3, at No. 3 doubles.

Ragee-Nelson and junior Neil Lesinski (Grayslake, Ill./Grayslake) recorded their third and second straight wins, respectively. Ragee-Nelson defeated Yunes, 6-2, 6-0, at No. 5 singles, while Lesinski nearly swept Dechow, 6-0, 6-1, at No. 3 singles. Junior Andy Jones added a singles win for Western, winning a three-set match against Powers, 6-1, 3-6, 6-1.

The Leathernecks finish their first Summit League cluster Sunday, March 30, with a 1 p.m. match against UMKC.

Western Illinois- 4, IUPUI- 0
Singles
No. 1 - Zach Frisch (WIU) led Gabriel Garcia (IUPUI), 6-2, 3-2 (DNF)
No. 2 - Martin Boström (WIU) led Gregory Sosa (IUPUI), 6-2, 3-0 (DNF)
No. 3 - Neil Lesinski (WIU) def. EJ Dechow (IUPUI), 6-0, 6-1
No. 4 - Francisco Ortiz (WIU) led Jesus Diaz (IUPUI), 7-5, 2-0 (DNF)
No. 5 - Sean Ragee-Nelson (WIU) def. Jorge Yunes (IUPUI), 6-2, 6-0
No. 6 - Andy Jones (WIU) def. Blake Powers (WIU), 6-1, 3-6, 6-1

Doubles
No. 1 - Frisch/Lesinski (WIU) led Garcia/Sosa (IUPUI), 6-4
No. 2 - Bostrom/Ragee-Nelson (WIU) def. Dechow/Diaz (IUPUI), 8-2
No. 3 - Oritz/Michael Tiu (WIU) def. Yunes/Powers (IUPUI), 8-3