SAN ANTONIO — For years, Southwestern men's tennis faced a glaring deficit in doubles against Trinity University, even as it closed the gap in singles competition. 

On the final day of the regular season, the Pirates showed how far they've come in doubles and how much work remains to unseat the perennial conference champions with a 7-2 loss, Southwestern's first of the season. 

Hunter Bajoit and Vesko Lekovic opened the match with an 8-4 win over Cameron Krimbill and Alessio Azzalini in No. 2 doubles. Drew Shuvalov and Carlos Esteban Rodero followed with an 8-6 victory over Christian Settles and Hao Nguyen in the No. 1 spot. Alexander Joseph and Steven Tibbetts nearly completed the doubles' sweep before falling 8-7 in the No. 3 spot. 

"Drew and Carlos were due for a big win and came through on the biggest stage," head coach Billy Porter said. "Vesko and Hunter continue to be a force at No. 2 and played outstanding for us." 

For once, Trinity was the team with the narrow margin for error in singles, and they walked that line perfectly, winning all six matches, including a pair of three-set victories. 

Bajoit opened with a 6-4, 6-1 loss to Krimbill in No. 1 singles. Joseph followed with a 6-2, 6-0 loss to Nguyen in the No. 3 spot. Steven Tibbetts battled Pitts but lost 7-5 in the first set in No. 5 singles and was then shutout with a 6-0 loss in the second set. Esteban Rodero dropped a pair of 6-3 sets to Hamilton in No. 4 singles, followed by a three-set loss (6-4, 1-6, 1-6) by Anton Borovik to Settles in No. 6 singles. Trinity's Azzalini completed the singles sweep with a three-set win (7-5, 6-1, 1-0) over Lekovic. 

"We had a real chance to sweep doubles but were still in a great spot going into singles," Porter said. "Trinity raised their game and took it to us pretty well." 

Southwestern men's tennis finishes the regular season with a 13-1 record, including 5-1 against conference opponents. The Pirates will compete in the SCAC Championship Tournament next weekend in San Antonio.