The Northern Illinois University men’s tennis team dropped a 5-2 road match to Buffalo on Thursday afternoon, only the second conference loss this season for the Huskies.

NIU (15-6, 5-2 MAC) split its series with the Bulls this season and had its winning streak stopped at four.

“We didn’t compete like a championship team today,” said head coach René Vidal. “A slow start in doubles at No. 1 and No. 2 put us behind early. We didn’t close out sets in singles like the finishers we are. And we lost our composure in key moments. We plan to be much stronger mentally in our next match and use this loss as a lesson for growth.”

The lone win for the Huskies in doubles came from Lorenzo Leti Messina / Federico Scotuzzi, who gathered a 6-2 victory at No. 3.

Nikola Puntaric (Ljubljana, Slovenia / Tulsa) put NIU on the board with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Theodoris Mitsakos at No. 1, but Buffalo would go on to take the next three courts to clinch the match.

No. 65 Iker Gaztambide Arrastia (Pamplona, Spain / Jesuitas) closed the match with a three-set victory, defeating Onder Balci 6-2, 4-6, 6-3.

The Huskies final road match of the season takes place on Saturday, traveling to Toledo (7-13, 2-6 MAC) for a noon match. The Rockets downed UIC on Thursday by score of 4-3.