The Panthers rolled into Amherst as a formidable squad, ranked as the top team in the country. Although the Jeffs would drop the overall score, 6-1, they definitely made some serious statements on the court. In particular, the Jeffs' first singles player, Josh Rilla '06, wiped the court with the second-ranked singles player in the country, Brian Waldron. Rilla defeated Waldron in straight sets, 6-3, 6-3, barely enough to break a sweat. Rilla also teamed with Danny Babkes '06 to win the top doubles tilt of the afternoon, 8-4. However, those were the only two wins that the Jeffs were able to muster. Babkes looked like he would follow his partner's lead at number-two singles, taking the first set, 6-4. But the junior quickly folded after his promising start, losing the next two sets, 6-0, 6-1.
There was also some controversy in the third singles spot. Sophomore Lenny Lepner dropped the first set, 6-3, but played his signature style of retriever tennis, forcing rallies that were 20-30 shots long. By the second set the endless points clearly caught up to his opponent, who suffered from severe leg cramps, allowing Lepner to take the second set with ease, 6-2. The dispute came in the third set, when it was decided against Lepner's will that he and his opponent would play a 10-point tiebreaker rather than a full set. Had Lepner's exhausted opponent been forced to play a full set, it is nearly certain that Lepner would have prevailed, but instead he dropped the tiebreaker, 11-9. Despite the lopsided score, the Jeffs certainly left quite an impression, winning the top singles and doubles matches and forcing each of the Panther's top three singles spots to three sets. "We definitely fared a lot better [against the Panthers] than most of the teams in the NESCAC," said Jeff Wan '08
The Jeffs felt like they had a much better shot at taking down the Polar Bears on Sunday, and they came tantalizingly close to doing just that. This time it was the lower-end of the Amherst singles lineup that came through, with senior captain Max Rettig winning his contest in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, in the number-five singles spot and first-year Wan pulling out a rough three-setter, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3. Babkes also played well, winning the number-two singles match in straight sets. Rilla had a bit of a letdown after his dominating victory against Middlebury. He lost, 6-4, 6-2, an outcome that only a few days ago had seemed impossible. The doubles was also shaky for Amherst, as the Jeffs dropped all three matches to lose the doubles point.
The match came down to the number-four singles position in which first-year Michael Mintz faced off against Bowdoin's Garret Gates. Mintz won the first set 6-4 and had a chance to serve out the match in the second set, leading 5-4, but dropped the game and lost in the tiebreaker. The third set was nerve-racking, as the two were the last match on the court and represented the winning point for either side. With both of their teams watching and shouting encouragement, the two battled to yet another tiebreaker. Mintz took an early lead and earned himself two match points leading 6-4 in the breaker. Once again his opponent came back strong, winning four straight points and handing Mintz and the Jeffs a heartbreaking loss, 4-6, 7-6, 7-6, in the deciding match. "We had Bowdoin on the ropes," said Wan. "We need to step up and win some of those doubles points to take pressure off of our singles players."
The Jeffs have one match left, against Tufts University, before heading into the NESCAC Tournament next weekend where they believe they can do legitimate damage to the top teams in the conference. If they play well, the Jeffs stand a chance of making NCAA Regionals for the first time in years.