The rookies have dominated the lineup, taking three of the six spots in singles and four of the spots in doubles. Sophomore transfer Lenny Lepner took over the number-one spot early in the fall season after Babkes sprained his ankle and was unable to continue. First-years Michael Mintz, Geoffrey Schwartz and Jeffrey Wan filled out the second, third and sixth spots, respectively. Senior captain Max Rettig played at number four, followed by sophomore Jeffrey Lawrence at the fifth spot. This order will undoubtedly be upset when veterans Rilla, Godsall and Babkes, who was having a stellar season prior to his injury, return. "This spring's team is much improved from last year, and even from our fall lineup," said Rettig. "We're very excited to have Josh Rilla, last year's number one, and Jonny Godsall, a key player, back from abroad. With our corps of newcomers gaining experience in the fall, we will be a very tough team to beat."
Even when not at full steam, the Jeffs were a phenomenal team, and the new players held their own. If the Jeffs' undefeated fall record is any indication, the team should have an enormously successful spring season. "Being a first-year player hasn't affected my level of play," said Wan, who played third doubles all fall in addition to sixth singles. "All of the rookies coming in have had substantial tournament experience, and throughout the fall season, none of us seemed to be affected by the importance of the matches."
The ECAC Championship at Vassar College set the tone for the men's fall season. The Jeffs competed against schools such as Georgetown, Salve Regina and New York Universities, yet won by the largest margin in tournament history, taking five of the six flight championships. Wan and fellow first-year Tal Avrahami took the doubles championship.
Next on the schedule was the Wilson ITA Men's Tennis New England Championships, hosted by MIT. Here the competition was steeper with Bowdoin, Williams, Bates and Middlebury Colleges and the host team participating in the championship matches. Babkes reached the semifinals, beating four opponents in the process. Though Babkes was able to beat two Panthers, the third proved too much, and the junior fell to tournament champion Brian Waldron of Middlebury. Lepner and Schwartz also participated in the tournament but bowed out after the first round.
In dual-match play, Brandeis University posed no problem for the Jeffs, as they swept the Judges 7-0. Each Jeff easily took his singles match, but the doubles matches proved to be a bit more challenging. Lepner and Schwartz, who competed at first doubles, fell to their opponents ,4-8. Avrahami and Wan easily took their match, 8-0. It was up to Lawrence and Mintz to ensure the doubles point, and they did so narrowly, 9-7.
Roger Williams University was even less of a challenge for the Jeffs. Not only did the Jeffs sweep the match, but they did not drop a single game in doubles play. The next day Amherst took on Salve Regina with Lepner at the helm, replacing an injured Babkes. Lepner had little time to get used to his new position for the match against Roger Williams, and when facing tougher competition he had trouble. He fell in the first set, 2-6, but he was able to keep his cool and rallied to 6-2 in the second, finally taking the match with a 7-6 third set. Mintz also lost his first set, 2-6, but came back to take the next two easily. Lawrence wasn't so lucky. Though he was able to steal the second set 6-4, he fell as a result of 1-6 outcomes in both the first and third sets. The Jeffs swept the doubles and the rest of the singles matches and were satisfied with their 6-1 victory.
Amherst found adequate competition in NESCAC opponent Colby College. Nearly all of the Jeffs won their matches in straight sets, but it was far from a simple sweep. Mintz had a pair of close sets, winning his first in a 7-5 squeaker before closing out his second, 6-4. Wan had a tough game in the six spot, also winning his first set by a close 7-5 before losing 4-6. He was, however, able to close out the final set, 10-6.
With a 4-0 record in the fall season, expectations are high for the Jeffs. Unfortunately, the tougher conpetition in the spring will make it more difficult for the Jeffs to win all of their matches 7-0. "The competition in the spring will be much tougher than in the fall," said Rettig. "We play seven teams [that were] ranked in the top 25 last year." However, the Jeffs have confidence that they can continue to improve their level of play and rise to the challenge of increased competition. "There is a strong likelihood that our team [will] extend our undefeated streak well into the spring," said Wan. "I was surprised to see many players come out of the offseason in better shape, and I feel like we are an even stronger team than we were in the fall. I can see a very promising spring season ahead of us."
The Jeffs' optimism does carry some caution, however. "We've all the talent to make it big this season, but as we know, talent alone doesn't count," said Lepner.
"We have been practicing with a great deal of intensity," said Rettig. "And I expect that to translate into success when we play our first matches over Spring Break."
The season opens on March 16 at Cal-Lutheran University.