The Panthers typically represent the greatest challenge of the season for the Jeffs, and this year was no different. The Panthers won the last two NESCAC Tournaments and won the NCAA Div. III Tournament in 2004. Their top singles player, Brian Waldron, is ranked sixth in the country, and had been ranked first until Josh Rilla '06 defeated him last year. Three of the Panthers' top-six singles players are ranked in the top 35 in the country.
Such stiff competition was a measuring stick for the Jeffs against not only the top team in the NESCAC, but also one of the premier teams in the country. The results showed that Amherst still has a ways to go before it is ready to join the ranks of the nation's elite Div. III tennis squads. The Jeffs were unable to take a single set from any Middlebury player. Rilla once again gave Waldron a run for his money, nearly taking the first set in a tiebreaker, and then dropping the second by only one break. Beyond Rilla's near first-set victory, however, there weren't too many positives for the Jeffs to take away from the match.
Regardless of the poor, albeit somewhat expected, result against Middlebury, the Jeffs are still excited about their prospects at the NESCAC Tournament. They will come into the tournament, which will be hosted by Williams College, as the fifth-ranked team in the conference. Their first round matchup will be against Bowdoin College, seeded fourth.
When the Jeffs and the Polar Bears met earlier in the season, Bowdoin was able to escape with a narrow 4-3 victory. However, senior Danny Babkes, who typically plays either number-two or three singles, was absent that week due to illness. Also, since that time, the Jeffs have made some changes in their doubles lineup that have brought positive results. Tal Avrahami '08 and first-year Zach Lerner have found an effective doubles chemistry and Geoff Schwartz '08 has had success teaming with either Jon Godsall '06 or Lenny Lepner '07. The Jeffs hope that these small changes will make all the difference in the outcome versus Bowdoin.
"The narrow loss to Bowdoin a few weeks ago was devastating," said Avrahami. "But with the return of Babkes to the singles lineup and with improved confidence in our doubles play, we are confident that we will avenge that loss." Should the Jeffs indeed defeat Bowdoin, they will earn a rematch against Middlebury in the semi-finals.
The match against Bowdoin will kick off April 28 at 1:00 p.m. The semifinals will be held on Saturday and the finals will be held on Sunday.
NESCAC Notes
Middlebury will be the top seed and have a bye in the first round of the NESCAC Tournament, which only invites the top six teams in the conference to compete. Williams has the second seed and will also have a bye. Third-seeded Trinity College will take on sixth-seeded Bates College in the first round and fourth-seeded Bowdoin will play Amherst.
Nationally, NESCAC teams continue to do very will in the rankings. Middlebury is ranked fourth in the country, followed closely by Williams at number five. Trinity is also in the top 10, while Amherst in 22nd and Bowdoin is 26th. The team's performances in NESCACs will likely help determine which ones are invited to compete in regionals, with a chance to advance to the Div. III National Tournament.