Ever since Cain and Abel failed so miserably to work out their differences, the term "brotherly love" has often seemed oxymoronic. A stroll through the mall watching siblings attempt to regain their single-child status once and for all only adds to this impression.

This history of sibling rivalry makes the example of the Tsai brothers-George '02 and Andy '03-all the more unusual. These two not only managed to survive to adulthood while growing up together, they did it while competing on the tennis courts.

As if sibling rivalries aren't enough, sports often become another realm of competition, and when two boys close in age play the same sport, the possibility for real problems increases exponentially. George and Andy, however, managed to avoid these issues and maintain a supportive relationship throughout their childhood.

George and Andy started playing tennis when they were 11 and ten years old, respectively. "We started taking a lesson once a week," George said. "I would have half an hour, and [Andy] would have half an hour."

What started off as a casual pastime soon blossomed into a serious interest. Within a year, the boys had begun to play in local tournaments, and as they continued to improve, they began traveling statewide. "We would play in a tournament somewhere almost every weekend," George said.

With each boy providing the other with a live-in hitting partner, the pair quickly improved. "We hit with each other four or five days a week. It was definitely great having my brother there, whenever you needed someone to hit with, they were right there. You didn't have to call anyone up to arrange a time," George said.

George did, however, have an age advantage and was better than his younger brother during their childhood years. This advantage meant that George played first court on the high school team, while Andy was on the number-two court.

Andy, however, was not jealous of his brother's skills. In fact, he found that it was "nice having someone older, with more experience, who was helping me win."

The lack of resentment went both ways in the Tsai relationship. After George came to Amherst, Andy took over as their high school's first-court player and led the team to the state championship, something that was not accomplished when George played.

George, however, could only be proud of his brother's success and was all the more pleased when Andy decided to follow him to Massachusetts and come to Amherst the following year.

For Andy, the decision to follow his brother was not a difficult one, although he said the year apart was also good for him. As a senior in high school, he was the captain and says, "It felt nice to be the captain and have some control over the team and be out of my brother's shadow a little bit."

In the end, though, Andy chose to reunite with his brother, saying that his decision was partially based on his desire to follow in George's footsteps.

Again, while many brothers would fall prey to debilitating sibling rivalries, the Tsai brothers have fit in well with the Amherst team. "The team itself is very close," said number-one singles player Bryan Wexler '02. "We are like an extended family, so they fit in well."

In their time at Amherst, the two brothers have continued to excel on the tennis courts. While younger brother Andy has enjoyed more playing time this year-he has a 6-4 record in singles and a record of 6-3 with doubles partner Peter Ransmeier '02-each brother has contributed in their time on the court.

George, who has stepped up into the singles ladder when injuries have plagued the Jeffs, has a record of 1-0 on the season.

"Both George and Andy make great contributions to the team," said Wexler. "They are both very experienced and knowledgeable players, so they help us in many ways."

Around the contributions of these two, the Jeffs have notched an impressive 7-3 record this year. This past weekend Andy and George were instrumental in the two wins, but in different ways.

Andy came back from a tough loss in his singles match to his Panther opponent from Middlebury to take a win with Ransmeier in the doubles line, ensuring another victory for the Amherst squad.

While Andy was making his contribution on the court, George was just as instrumental in his supportive role off of the court.

"George almost acted like a coach against Middlebury," said Wexler. "He helped players make adjustments during their matches, and we were able to pull out the match because of it."

The pair's decision to attend Amherst was made easier by the non-competitive relationship the the have. George said that the two have never really competed in anything, either on the tennis court or off. "One thing I've noticed is that in all things, we're not competitive, there's no competition at all between us," he said.

Andy echoed his brother's statement and pointed out how unusual their brotherly relationship is by saying that "We've always been competitive, but not towards each other," he said. If only Cain had been so rational.