Best of all, there is no reason why the stellar performance that the team demonstrated last year should not continue in 2006-2007 under the leadership of senior co-captains Auloke Mather and Peter Hatfield. The team feels the loss of Nick Haslett, Tyler Mixter and Edward Schleyer to graduation, but all of the top-six players from the 2005-06 lineup are returning to the courts, including the co-captains, senior Stuart Landesberg, and sophomores Gautam Kalani and Drew Blacker. Junior Mark Rapisarda is currently abroad in Prague but is expected to make key contributions to scoring when he returns.
A key advantage of the Amherst squad, players agree, is the depth in the lineup. "Last year depth was our strength, without question, and the same should be true this year," said Landesberg. "The players who spent last season at the bottom of the lineup have already shown that they are ready to compete this year in key positions." In that vein, recovered players Andrew Slutsky '08 and Brian Warner '09, as well as senior Craig McCready and sophomore Jerome Giovinnazo are ready to contribute.
Three first-years, Andrew Kriete, Lee Banta and Saahil Sud, former clubmates of Blacker's from New Jersey, bring fresh blood to the squad. They face high expectations from the rest of the team, and their performance so far has shown that they merit those expectations. "The [first-years] have exemplary attitudes and we are optimistic that they will come through for us once matches start," said Landesberg.
The Jeffs look forward to defending last year's successes in this year's campaign and to moving up the rankings. "This season is looking like a good competitive season with a chance to continue moving up the rankings, and other teams looking to challenge us from behind," said Blacker. "This Friday we will have a big match against Navy, who is coming off a good win over Bowdoin College. Bates College will be another good match, and we will be looking to stay on top of Brown, and capitalize on what will probably be a weaker Cornell University team this season in January."
The Jeffs have set a specific goal for themselves: to hold the number-eight spot in the nation by the end of their campaign. They have already shown that they are willing to put in the necessary sweat and toil. "We started the year off running up Memorial Hill and that set the tone," Landesberg confirmed. "We are going to work hard this year. Dartmouth [College], Cornell and Brown all graduated key players and look vulnerable. Also, none of us seniors have ever beaten Williams [College] and we know this is not only our last, but our best shot at them. With such a strong returning cast and the emerging players, this is as good a chance as we will have."
The squad begins its march up the rankings with a match today against Northeastern University.
NESCAC Notes
Trinity College is ranked first in the nation in the CSA preseason coaches poll. Williams College has the next highest ranking at seventh, and Amherst is 10th.