The team is coming off an excellent fall season in which they went undefeated and had strong performances up and down the ladder. In the fall, Amherst defeated top-rivals Williams and Middlebury Colleges by a scores of 7-2 and 6-3, respectively. Overall, the shorter season was highlighted by very strong individual performances in the Div. III Wilson/ITA New England Region Championships and the New England Championships.
The fall season is important, but the spring comprises the bulk of the schedule and features the National Tournament. The Jeffs also get to play their most challenging matches in the spring, starting next week when they travel to Claremont, Calif. to face powerhouses such as Emory University and Cal State-Fullerton. The Jeffs will play a total of five matches in California before they return to Amherst to play an all NESCAC schedule. Last fall, Amherst proved to be the best of the typically formidable conference.
What makes Amherst so good is its depth, and this spring season the Jeffs will be even deeper. At the top of the lineup sits junior Alicia Menezes, who has been an All-American since her rookie year. Menezes has won the ITA New England Doubles championships three times, each time with a different partner. Joining her this year at doubles, and somewhere at either the second or third spot, is first-year All-American Brittany Berckes, who exploded into the lineup and provided strong and consistent singles play. First-year Pam Jeppson, who missed the fall due to illness will most likely also play at the top of the lineup, either at the two or three spot.
The rest of the singles lineup includes juniors Monica Snyder and Jen Murphy and senior co-captain Katie Hudson. Junior Laura Stein will also look to have time in the singles lineup, and forms a strong third doubles team with Murphy. The second doubles team of Hudson and Snyder will also be a key combination for Amherst.
Filling out the rest of the roster for the Jeffs are sophomores Melissa Moulton, Tara Shabahang and Laurel LaMontagne, junior Amy DiPilato and senior co-captain Caitlin Rhodes.
The bottom of the Jeffs' lineup is very strong, and they have the luxury of being the deepest team in the NESCAC. Stein, who won the sixth singles flight in the fall for New England will provide great insurance along with first-years Jennifer Ouyang and Jill Wexler.
Like in the fall, Amherst will focus heavily on its doubles play. "Doubles will most definitely be a focus of ours," said Stein. "We will have three new doubles combinations. The big matches are almost always decided by doubles, as the doubles has a way of setting the tone for the rest of a match."
The Jeffs expect another season of fine play and with their depth and talented first-year class; they will shoot for the coveted National Championship.
"Winning a National Championship is our number one goal, without a doubt," said Hudson. "As long as we are working hard and having fun, I don't see much standing in our way."
NESCAC Notes
Amherst won the 2006 NESCAC Championship, defeating Williams College. Williams and Middlebury College, both of whom Amherst defeated in the fall, look to provide the biggest challenge to knocking off Amherst this spring. Amy Roche '07 of Middlebury, Cary Gibson '09 of Williams and Menezes are the top three players of the top three teams. Gibson won the number one singles flight at New Englands in the fall.