Sophomore Sandra Sasidharan suffered her first singles loss of the season as St. Louis University dominated the women’s tennis team 7-0 over the weekend.

“The SLU women are, in my opinion, the best team we have played thus far,” said head coach John Blackburn.

The Panther women did not win a match in singles or doubles.

The men’s team defeated the Billikens 5-2.

Sasidharan, who entered the weekend undefeated in seven matches so far this season, lost her No. 1 singles match 2-6, 7-6, 10-1.

The third set was played as a 10-game tiebreaker because the Panthers had already lost too many matches to have a chance at winning.

Another reason for the tiebreaker was because the first two sets had outlasted all the other matches, it was 9 p.m. and the two head coaches agreed upon the short 10-point tiebreaker.

The men won the No. 1-5 singles matches for the third time this season, but the doubles tandem of juniors Chuck LeVaque and Brandon Lenfert lost at No.1 doubles 8-7 for only the second time this year. The Panthers were dominant in singles play with Lenfert, LeVaque and freshman Vuk Milicevic winning in consecutive sets and only losing six games combined in six sets.

The Panthers won five of the six singles matches without the help of two regular contributors. Junior Ryan Blakenbacker and sophomore Chris Thomas did not get to test their knee strength against the Billikins because they were serving one-match suspensions for violating team rules. It would not have mattered for Blakenbacker as the training staff decided that he needed to rest his injured knee for another week.

“The medical staff felt he should rest this week,” Blackburn said. “He can take this week off and also have spring break to try and heal. He will be re-evaluated after spring break.”

Thomas, however, has made progress with his similar knee injury and would have gotten back to singles play if he had not gotten the suspension.

“I am getting close to being 100 percent,” Thomas said. “My knee is feeling great.”

Thomas will have a chance to get onto the court soon as the men will be traveling to Illinois-Springfield March 8 to take on the Prairie Stars at the Washington Park tennis complex.