Coming off an 18-8 season and a trip to the NCAA Division III Final Four for the fifth straight season, the Washington University men’s tennis team returns to action on Saturday against Division II Drury University. The Bears begin the season ranked No. 4 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Division III top-30 poll.

In a field of 128 players at the ITA Central Regional Championships, No. 9 seed junior Adam Putterman of the Washington University men’s tennis team won seven consecutive matches over four days to take the singles title. With the victory, Putterman qualifies for the USTA/ITA Small College Championships in Mobile, Ala., on Oct. 13-16.

Coming off a 6-0 loss to No. 2 Emory University in the University Athletic Association finals on April 17, the Washington University men’s tennis team bounced back with a convincing 8-1 victory over Grinnell College on Saturday. The No. 6 Bears started off the day with a 3-0 sweep in doubles for the seventh time this season.

After a commanding 9-0 victory over Case Western Reserve University and a 5-3 win over the University of Chicago, the Washington University men’s tennis team was swept by Emory University, 6-0, at the University Athletic Association Championships last weekend in Beverly, Mass.

Coming off its first two-match losing streak of the season, the No. 5 ranked Washington University men’s tennis team bounced back this weekend, earning three wins over a two-day period at home. The Bears defeated National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) No. 24 Lindenwood University, 6-3, on Friday, and No. 18 McKendree University, 5-4, and Principia College, 9-0 on Saturday.

In its twelfth consecutive match against a ranked opponent, The Washington University men’s tennis team lost at home for the first time in more than four years. The No. 5 Bears hosted the No. 15 University of Chicago at the Tao Tennis Center on Saturday, but fell 5-4 to their conference rivals. The team’s last loss at home came on March 11, 2007.

The No. 5 Washington University men’s tennis team won a pair of close matches, 5-4, over Division II No. 19 Northwest Missouri State University and No. 10 Graceland University over spring break. With these wins, the Bears overcame the biggest threats in recent memory to their four-year home winning streak.

The current roster of the Washington University men’s tennis team hopes to continue its run of perfection against Division II No. 20 Northwest Missouri State University this Friday. The Bears have not lost at the Tao Tennis Center since March 11, 2007, exactly four years prior to the upcoming match against the Bearcats.

The Washington University men’s tennis team gave some of its less-experienced players a chance to make an impression at the Principia College Invitational last weekend. The Bears responded in convincing fashion, taking four of seven singles flights and one of three doubles flights against the University of Missouri-St. Louis, Truman State University and Principia College.

After defeating No. 11 North Carolina Wesleyan University, 8-1, and No. 6 University of California Santa-Cruz, 5-4, the No. 7 Washington University men’s tennis team dropped the finals match of the ITA Indoor National Championship, 6-3, to No. 2 Emory University.