The Michigan men’s tennis team (5-3 Big Ten, 12-9 overall) left Columbus with the sour taste of a 6-1 defeat at the hands of one of its biggest rivals. With Saturday’s loss to No. 30 Ohio State, the Wolverines suffered their second consecutive Big Ten defeat.

But don’t judge a book by its cover.

“I think the score was misleading,” Michigan coach Bruce Berque said. “All of the matches were extremely close. We came up just short in almost every match. It was really just a couple points here and there that would separate (a win from a loss). We’re certainly not far off.”

Down to just six players because of senior Michael Rubin’s season-ending fractured wrist and because senior David Anving was unavailable due to personal reasons, Michigan struggled to stay with Ohio State. Even though most of the Wolverines managed to stay close, they still came up short.

In its final road match of the season, Michigan’s lone point came from Matko Maravic’s impressive performance at No. 2 singles. One of Michigan’s most consistent singles players in recent matches, Maravic improved his individual record to 13-8. After losing to Ohio State’s Joey Atas in the fall, Maravic sought his revenge when playing Atas for the second time. The rising freshman phenom came through in dominating fashion, defeating the Buckeye sophomore in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3.

“I think Matko has improved a lot,” Berque said. “He was very aggressive today. He had a game plan and stuck with it.”

Unfortunately for Michigan, Maravic’s victory proved to be the only tally in the Wolverines’ win column on the day.

At No. 4 singles, senior Josef Fischer refused to go down without a fight. Fischer got off to a great start, taking the first set in a tiebreaker. But he was unable to hold off Ohio State’s Scott Green, who bounced back to secure the second set and eventually defeated Fischer after a third-set tiebreaker, 6-7(5), 6-4, 1-0(4).

Sophomores Steve Peretz and Vinny Gossain also gave impressive performances at No. 5 and No. 6 singles, respectively. But both Wolverines were unable to come up with victories.

Ohio State (6-1, 14-6) sported a talented roster against Michigan, including Atas, who claimed the Big Ten singles championship in the fall.

But Berque believed that his team has the talent and competitiveness to compete with such a strong opponent.

“I am very disappointed to lose because I thought it was a team we were capable of beating,” Berque said. “But I’m still proud of the way we played.”

Playing on the road in Columbus, the Wolverines were not welcomed with a friendly Buckeyes atmosphere.

“Certainly, things didn’t go our way in terms of the crowd and some of the officiating,” Berque said. “But it’s part of playing on the road, and it’s a good experience.”

With the final two Big Ten matches coming up next weekend, Berque is confident that Michigan is in line to secure a strong seed in the Big Ten Tournament, which starts on April 28. But Berque explained that the team still needs to work on its doubles play. All three Michigan duos suffered defeats against Ohio State, allowing the Buckeyes to earn the doubles point.

“In doubles, we have to do a better job putting away volleys and finishing points at the net,” Berque said. “There are no secrets. We just need to continue to improve our skills. Mentally and competitively, we’re good. I think we’re on the right track.”

The Wolverines will return to the Varsity Tennis Center next weekend to close out the dual-match season against Indiana on Saturday and Penn State on Sunday.

“We’re excited to play next weekend because we have an opportunity to finish a lot higher in the Big Ten standings than we have in the past,” Berque said.