After powering through six matches without losing a set, Washington University senior Isaac Stein dropped the championship match of the Wilson/Intercollegiate Tennis Association Central Regional Championships to No. 1 seed Sam Sweeney of North Central College, 6-3, 6-3.

“I guess that’s the funny thing about sports: One day you can play great, and the next day you can kind of lose it,” said Stein, the No. 2 seed in the 128 player field. “I let a couple of chances slip away, and I think that was the difference.”

Senior Max Woods, who was seeded 12th, advanced to the semifinals without dropping a set before also being taken out by Sweeney, 6-4, 7-6 (4).

“The best part of my game this weekend was focus,” Woods explained. “I just stayed focused on the moment, worked my way through tough situations and loved the big points.”

Entering the tournament, the men’s team boasted four players seeded in the top 15, including Stein, Woods, sophomore Adam Putterman (No. 11) and sophomore Gary Parizher (No. 15). Putterman advanced to the round of 16 before being taken out by Sweeney, 6-4, 6-3. Stein ousted Parizher in the round of 16, 6-4, 6-3.

Despite the fact that there were 32 schools involved in a pool of 128 total players, four of the Bears’ 10 singles players lost to a teammate.

“It was a shame they did not do us justice in separating us better in the draw,” head coach Roger Follmer said.

Stein faced sophomore Bryan Haywood in the round of 32 before knocking off Parizher on the same day, and Woods defeated sophomore Kareem Farah in the round of 32 and freshman Naveen Chadalavada in the round of 16.

“While it’s a little frustrating that we are taking each other out of the draw, it was also a testament to us and our program because our players were good enough to make it to the rounds where we would have to play each other,” Stein said.

On the doubles side of the draw, the No. 1 seeded Stein/Woods team, who won this tournament last year, made an early exit with an 8-4 loss in the round of 32 to Ben Kopecky and Sam Miles of DePauw University.

“They played an excellent match,” Woods said of the DePauw team. “I just think we have to be a little more focused than we were this time around.”

“All of the teams in the tournament are so solid that a team in the second round, on any given day, is good enough to beat the No. 1 seed,” Stein said.

Though the Bears have halted team practices until the spring, they will compete again from October 14-17 at the Small College Championships in Mobile, Ala.

“I know all the guys will go back to the drawing board in a week or two and work on the aspects of their games they can improve upon before we resume team practices again next semester,” Follmer said.