Franklin, Ind. - The Franklin College men's tennis team lost its Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) home opener 7-2 to Earlham College on Saturday at the Mickel-Hoover Tennis Complex.

The doubles tandem of junior Ethan Caldwell (Terre Haute, Ind./Terre Haute North) and sophomore Alex Hammer (Greenwood, Ind./Greenwood) earned an 8-6 triumph on the No. 1 court.

Earlham (8-8, 2-0 HCAC) recorded doubles victories on the No. 2 and 3 courts to hold a 2-1 lead heading into the six singles matches.

Freshman Dean Elrod (Milan, Ind./Milan) won in straight sets at No. 4 singles. He won the opening set in a tiebreaker before securing the match with a 6-3 score in the second set.

Caldwell lost a hard-fought three-set match at No. 2 singles, losing 10-8 in a third-set tiebreaker.

Franklin stands 2-3 in league play and has won three matches this spring. The Grizzlies return to action on Friday, April 22, at 5 p.m. when it hosts Anderson University from the Mickel-Hoover Tennis Complex.