In what has been an up-and-down season for the Jeffs, statement wins against top-ranked teams such as Kalamazoo College and Div. I schools such as the University of Connecticut have consistently been followed by disappointing efforts against middle-of-the-pack NESCAC competition. After opening up the spring slate with an emphatic 6-3 win over 13th-ranked Kalamazoo-including a sweep of all six singles matches-the Jeffs promptly lost to 16th-ranked Bowdoin College.
Later in the year, Amherst also dropped a close match to Trinity. There were certainly excuses to fall back on-key players had been injured and poor weather had robbed the Jeffs of a true home court advantage in several matches-but for a team that likes to consider itself as being right on the heels of Middlebury and Williams Colleges in the race for NESCAC supremacy, these were not acceptable results.
On Friday, the Jeffs had the opportunity to prove not only to the larger tennis world, but also to themselves, that they are the real deal. Against the Bantams at home earlier in the season Amherst had lost 6-3, and the Jeffs were looking for revenge.
Things did not start well for Amherst. Because of the weather, the matches were moved to Mt. Holyoke College-an inauspicious start to the weekend. Said first-year Daniel Kim, "We would have liked for the weather to have been nicer, so we could have played on our own court."
Even after the change in venue, things did not immediately improve.As has been the trend for the team all season, Amherst struggled in the doubles, with the team of juniors Geoff Schwartz and Jeff Wan combining for the only win. Going into the singles down 2-1, the Jeffs knew they would need some big performances. The last time the two teams played, the Bantams won each of the top three singles matches and the draw was the same this time around. The results, however, were not.
In the top singles slot Zach Lerner '09 got things started on the right foot by easily dispatching the 11th-ranked singles player in the nation, Brian Marsden, 6-2, 6-2. The second and third singles flights proved to be a little more difficult, but both Michael Mintz '08 and Schwartz managed to pull out three-set victories. Now leading 4-2, the Jeffs needed just one more singles victory to secure the win. Senior co-captain Karti Subramanian provided just that, winning fifth singles, 6-1, 6-4. Wan and Kim did not get to finish their matches, but both were on serve in the third set when Amherst won the clinching match. The victory propelled Amherst into the NESCAC semifinals against top-seed and perennial national title contender Middlebury. The Panthers came into Saturday's match tied for third in the national rankings. Just a week earlier on April 21, the Jeffs had lost to Middlebury 6-3. Amherst had difficulty improving on the result the second time around.
Schwartz and Wan teamed for another doubles win, their second of the weekend, but the other two teams fell short, giving Middlebury a 2-1 lead at the conclusion of the doubles matches. Early returns in the singles were encouraging, as Lerner beat the third-ranked singles player in the nation, Alex Scott, for the second time in as many weeks in straight sets. However, that was the last win of the day for Amherst, as Schwartz and Wan both capitulated in straight sets, and first-year Daniel Kim was unable to pull out a tough three-setter.
Although the loss to Middlebury was disappointing, the Jeffs got news just a few days later that they had received a Pool C bid into the 41-team NCAA Tournament. After a first-round bye, Amherst will play the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the second round on Saturday. The match will be hosted by Middlebury. Should the Jeffs prevail against MIT, they will likely have a rematch against Middlebury.
NESCAC Notes
The Jeffs are one of four NESCAC teams to have received a bid to the NCAA Tournament. The others are Middlebury, which won the NESCAC title, and thus an automatic bid into the tournament, Williams College and Bowdoin College.