No. 53 Oregon men’s tennis (13-7, 4-5 Big Ten) was no match for the No. 20 Michigan State Spartans (13-7, 10-0 Big Ten), who came into Eugene and showed the Ducks why they sit atop the Big Ten with a 4-0 shutout victory. Several Oregon players played an even match with their opponents, but the Spartans were quicker to get on the board.

“They were just better than us,” head coach Nils Schyllander said. “We competed hard and we pushed back today and got into a bunch of third sets. They were just a little bit better. It’s the reason they’re in the first place of the conference.”

After two fairly close doubles matches and one lopsided, MSU took doubles 2-0.

Matthew Burton and Pierre Mouesca fell behind early in their match. They were down 5-0 before finally getting on the board, but by then it was too late as they were defeated 6-1. The other two matches were a lot closer. Vlad Breazu and Declan Galligan traded games their whole match, but it would not be finished. Cameron Burton and Lachlan Robertson also traded games with their opponents for the first five before falling behind 4-2. They still had some fight in them, but fell short 6-4 as the Spartans claimed the doubles point.

“We need to be a little more assertive to start the doubles,” Schyllander said. “We need to come out of the gates a little harder.”

The Ducks stayed in it throughout singles, but MSU stood strong and kept them off the board.

Robertson had a rough first set. While trailing 5-1, he suffered an ankle injury and continued playing through his limp. He was defeated 6-1 in the first set. A grimacing Robertson attempted to play the second set, but didn’t have what it took to continue and was forced to forfeit his match. He left the courts on crutches with his foot in a boot.

Breazu’s opponent got the better of him in the first set, beating him 6-3. He fell behind again in the second set and was defeated 6-2 to end his match.

Mouesca was matched up with the No. 13 singles player in the country in Matthew Forbes and did not disappoint. They were in a 5-5 tie in the first set, but Mouesca fell short, 7-5. He came out firing in his second set, leading 5-2, but it would go unfinished.

Matthew Burton was down from the beginning of his first set and could never come back, losing 6-1. He held a small lead early in his second set that only got bigger as he forced a third set with a 6-3 win. Burton fell behind in the final set, but it wouldn’t be finished.

Cameron Burton went all the way down to the wire with his opponent and was forced into a tiebreaker, but Burton came up short 7-5. He had the advantage in his second set, but they would not finish.

Sam Olszakowski struggled in his first set, losing 6-2. He jumped to an early lead in his second set and never looked back, winning 6-1 to force a third set. His opponent struck first in the final set before running away with a 6-1 victory to give the Spartans the match.

The Ducks begin their final road trip of the regular season April 10, when they visit the Ohio State Buckeyes for a 3 p.m. match.