Wartburg College Athletics

OWATONNA, Minn. — The Knights defeated Macalester 4-3 on Saturday. The Knights earned the doubles point with wins at No. 1 and No. 2 doubles. The teams split the six singles matches, with the Knights adding victories at No. 3, No. 5, and No. 6 singles.

In doubles, Macalester struck first at No. 3, where Alexander Coleman and Eric Yang defeated Milan Lecic and Cole Palese 6-4, but Robert Matera and Ezequiel Viteri answered with a 6-4 win over Derek Chen and Charles Flaman at No. 1. Shuya Machida and Landon Murch then clinched the point at No. 2 with a 6-3 victory over Beckett Annes and Kangyu Li.

Macalester moved in front early in singles after Chen defeated Palese 6-1, 6-0 at No. 2 and Flaman beat Viteri 6-3, 6-2 at No. 1. Coleman followed with a 6-3, 6-0 win over John Gustafson at No. 4, putting Macalester ahead 3-1.

The Knights pulled back into the match with wins from Lecic and Matera. Lecic defeated Annes 6-2, 6-3 at No. 5, and Matera evened the match at 3-3 with a 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 (10-7) match-tiebreak win over Zac Regelman at No. 6. Machida then clinched the match for the Knights at No. 3 singles, defeating Li 7-6(6), 7-5 to secure a 4-3 final.

Doubles
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Matera/Viteri (WARMT) def. Derek Chen/Charles Flaman (MACM) 6-4
Machida/Murch (WARMT) def. Beckett Annes/Kangyu Li (MACM) 6-3
Alexander Coleman/Eric Yang (MACM) def. Lecic/Palese (WARMT) 6-4
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2

Singles
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Charles Flaman (MACM) def. Viteri (WARMT) 6-3, 6-2
Derek Chen (MACM) def. Palese (WARMT) 6-1, 6-0
Machida (WARMT) def. Kangyu Li (MACM) 7-6(6), 7-5
Alexander Coleman (MACM) def. Gustafson (WARMT) 6-3, 6-0
Lecic (WARMT) def. Beckett Annes (MACM) 6-2, 6-3
Matera (WARMT) def. Zac Regelman (MACM) 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 (10-7)
Order of finish: 2, 1, 4, 5, 6, 3

The Knights Top Performers

Shuya Machida
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- Won at No. 3 singles, 7-6(6), 7-5
- Won at No. 2 doubles with Murch, 6-3

Robert Matera
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- Won at No. 6 singles, 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 (10-7)
- Won at No. 1 doubles with Viteri, 6-4

Milan Lecic
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- Won at No. 5 singles, 6-2, 6-3

Game Notes: Wartburg vs Macalester 

• Wartburg picks up its first win over Macalester in program history

  • Wartburg is 1-3 all-time vs Macalester

• Landon Murch and Shuya Machida are undefeated as doubles partners

  • 4-0 on the season

Up Next:

The Wartburg College tennis team hosts American Rivers Conference Tournament play on Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, at 10 a.m. in Dubuque, Iowa.