Villanova men’s tennis (5-9) dropped a competitive Big East Conference matchup to Marquette (4-13) at home, 4–2.

The Wildcats opened the match by battling for the doubles point, ultimately securing it with wins on Courts No. 2 and No. 3. Juniors Kush Anand and Thomas Wakefield earned a hard-fought 7–5 victory over Luke Coppage and Ivan Vazquez at the No. 2 position.

Sophomores Quincy Jones and Jack Sherner followed with a 6–4 win against Kristian Blagoev and Remi St. Laurent at No. 3 to clinch the doubles point for Villanova. Marquette’s lone doubles win came at the top spot, where Hugh Perrill and Blake Roegner defeated senior Cooper Gordon and junior Ethan Carr, 6–1.

“Doubles was great,” said head coach Brad Adams. “Court 1 was a tough matchup for Cooper and Ethan, but Courts 2 and 3 were able to win close matchups and get breaks.”

Villanova carried momentum into singles play, but Marquette responded by winning four of the five completed matches to secure the team victory.

At No. 1 singles, Gordon pushed Roegner to three sets before falling 6–0, 4–6, 6–3. Junior Will Monahan dropped a 6–1, 6–3 decision to Blagoev at No. 2, while Carr fell 6–2, 6–4 to Anderson at the No. 3 position.

Wakefield was edged in a tightly contested match at No. 4 singles, falling 7–5, 7–5 to St. Laurent. Anand provided Villanova’s lone singles victory of the day, battling to a 6–3, 3–6, 6–4 win over Coppage at No. 5.

At No. 6 singles, Justin Frattarelli was in the middle of a three-set battle with Vazquez before the match went unfinished, trailing 2–6, 6–1.

The matchup marked Villanova’s second Big East contest of the season. The Wildcats previously opened conference play with a 7–0 loss to Creighton, making Sunday’s match another early test against conference competition.

Despite the result, Villanova showed improvement in doubles play and competed closely in several singles matches, particularly in three-set battles at the top and bottom of the lineup.

“I think we can use it [the loss] in a positive note, “ added Adams. “In singles we need to work on taking care of points, coming from behind, and out attention to detail out of the changeovers. We get too relaxed after a break. We need to realize that our opponent will still come out fighting.”

The match also served as Senior Day for Villanova, and Cooper Gordon was honored as the team’s only senior.

Gordon has been a consistent presence at the top of the lineup throughout the season, competing at both No. 1 singles and doubles. His leadership and experience have been key to a relatively young Villanova roster.

With Gordon as the only senior, the Wildcats are expected to return much of their lineup next season, providing continuity and experience.

“Cooper will be a huge loss going forward,” said Adams. He’s resilient playing at Court 1, the toughest matchup. He’s competitive even when he’s not winning. His experience and ability to be competitive  shows the other guys it’s possible to win at 1.”

Up next, the Wildcats will travel to Bucknell on Sunday, March 29. The match is set to begin at 1 p.m.