Middlebury clinched the doubles point however, as Amherst's other two teams, composed of Adam Leibsohn '03 and Josh Rilla '06 and co-captain Brian Chin '03 and Jon Godsall '06, who fell 5-8 and 4-8, respectively.
The Panthers also swept the Lord Jeffs in singles play, winning all six points en route to posting a 7-0 victory.
On Sunday, Chin posted the only singles win of the weekend as he edged out Rochester's Eric Prince 6-1, 1-6, 6-3. Amherst's first singles player, Leibsohn, and second singles player, Max Rettig '05, also took their matches into the third set, but were unable to hang on for victories as Rochester grabbed five of the six singles points.
Rochester also won the doubles point (despite Chin and Godsall's 8-5 win) for a 6-1 record on the day.
Facing off against tougher NESCAC competitors, without the fall's top player, first-year Danny Babkes, and with a recuperating Josh Rilla '06, the Lord Jeffs have struggled to post the dominating wins that marked their 3-0 fall season.
Since returning from the disabled list earlier this spring, Rilla has gone 0-2 in singles play and 0-3 in doubles play. "Getting back into it has been one of the most frustrating experiences of my life," said Rilla. "I didn't know how much I'd lose in four months."
"The other teams are stronger and we haven't stepped up," said Chin, "Every match is close. It's more about being mentally tough than having shots and skills."
With a record of 6-4 in the 2002-03 season, the men's team has easily surpassed last year's 4-7 record.
However, with a match against M.I.T. today, a NESCAC tournament scheduled for this weekend at Middlebury College and an upcoming rendezvous with Tufts University, the season's not over yet. "We can't get discouraged. We can beat those teams," said Chin. "We have two big matches left, everyone has to just go out there and believe they can win."