After getting off to a fast start yesterday against North Carolina State, the Michigan men’s tennis team couldn’t carry its momentum to the end.

In a back-and-forth match, the Wolverines lost out on the final singles point and were defeated by the 52nd-ranked Wolfpack (4-3) at the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Center in Raleigh, N.C.

Michigan (1-1 overall) started off the day by winning the doubles point and the first singles match to go up 2-0, but allowed the Wolfpack (4-0) to close the gap.

After dropping the next three singles matches, junior Chris Madden won his singles contest to tie the overall match at 3-3. Despite the hard-fought effort by freshman Chris Cha, Michigan failed to capitalize on the last singles point and earned its first loss of the season.

Michigan coach Bruce Berque said he sees areas for improvement and is confident his team can overcome its challenges.

“We can’t take any match lightly,” Berque said. “The other team played well, but we have to play with a little more discipline and stick to the game plan.”

Berque was especially pleased with the consistency of Madden, who was the only Wolverine to win both his doubles and singles matches.

“He steps up in pressure situations,” Berque said. “He enjoys being in that spot. He strikes the right balance in playing with recklessness and a strong focus.”

By grinding out his matches with confidence, Madden put on the best individual performance of the day.

“I don’t feel like I’m playing my best tennis right now, but I’m finding ways to win,” Madden said. “The coaches have been helping me on the court with strategy and telling me to be in certain places.”

Despite coming off an impressive victory against No. 29 Ryan Lipman of Vanderbilt on Saturday, junior Jason Jung couldn't pull off the same magic against North Carolina State's Jaime Pulgar and was beat in straight sets. In doing so, Jung became one win shy of his 50th-career singles victory and will look to reach the career milestone next weekend when the Wolverines take on No. 14 Kentucky.

Jung and the rest of his teammates look to continue their domination in doubles play, which seems to be Michigan's strength at this point of the season.

“We have good doubles this year,” Madden said. “We have new guys who have come in and contributed. Hopefully we can carry this forward as we move through the season.”

Even though Michigan had difficulty closing its match against North Carolina State, Berque put the match into perspective for his squad.

“It’s still early,” Berque said. “We have to learn how to beat teams with discipline.”