Despite missing two starters, the men's tennis team still managed to pull out a convincing 7-2 win at home over Springfield College on Wednesday afternoon.
After losing two of three doubles matches, the Jumbos rebounded to take all six singles matches in straight sets, improving their record to 7-5 overall.
The injuries may have hurt Tufts more in doubles than in singles, as one doubles starter, sophomore Jon Trott, remained out with a shoulder injury. In his absence, the doubles teams were remodeled and players were forced to step up the ladder.
At second doubles, sophomore Daniel Landers and freshman Tom Wilmanski fell quickly to their Springfield counterparts 8-3, while junior Drew Frankel and sophomore Bryan Wilner battled hard but dropped third doubles by a score of 9-7.
"We competed decently," Landers said. "But it was a little bit disappointing that we couldn't have had a closer match at two, and I think we probably could have done a little better. We made a lot of easy mistakes that ... we really can't make."
"Springfield plays very good doubles," coach Doug Eng added. "For us to sweep would have been a challenge, especially because we are missing a couple of players, so we had to improvise. We were a little shaky, and I think we just need to get more comfortable and more natural out there. We are working hard at it."
The lone Tufts doubles win came in the one spot from the tandem that usually plays in the second slot on the ladder, senior captain Will Fleder and freshman Paul Kohnstamm. The duo took the match with ease, cruising to an 8-1 victory and improving to 3-1 in its last four doubles matches.
"We're playing great," Fleder said. "[Paul is] so great at volleys, and I'm good at serving and returning and setting him up, and it's really worked out well. We played really well today, and we think we have a shot at beating Williams' and Amherst's two [next week]."
Though Fleder has recently been suffering from shoulder pain, he reported no pain during either his singles or doubles matches and does not expect it to be a problem in the future.
In singles, Tufts remained unfazed by the absences of both Trott and sophomore Andrew Rosen. The unfamiliar ladder shut out the Pride from winning a single set in any of the six singles matches.
At first singles, Fleder was one of the first players done with his match, as he ripped through the first set 6-0 and dropped just two games in the second.
"My opponent didn't have a great backhand, and I was able to target that," Fleder said. "Also, finishing off games early in the match was big. A lot of the games were tight, but I was able to pull them out and totally change momentum. I got up 5-0 and didn't look back from there."
Freshmen Jake Fountain and Tony Carucci took care of business at second and third singles by scores of 6-3, 6-4 and 6-2, 6-1, respectively, while Wilner rebounded from his doubles loss with a 6-3, 6-3 win at the fourth singles spot.
At fifth singles, Landers also came back strong after his doubles defeat and gave up just two games in his match.
"In singles, I was able to make that first serve in, which for me is a weapon. As soon as I did that, all the points got easier, and then I got an early break in both sets and that just set the mood."
To round out the singles results, Vinh Tran dominated his match at No. 6 to win 6-1, 6-0.
After back-to-back wins over teams that are below the NESCAC's typically high standards, the Jumbos will now prepare to face two of their toughest opponents of the season in Amherst and Williams. The team will get three days to rest before traveling to Amherst on Sunday and then out to Williams on Tuesday.
With just a 2-4 record thus far in conference play, the Jumbos will need solid performances against both of these teams to strengthen their postseason hopes. Both teams are ranked in the top 15 in the country by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, as Williams sits at No. 9 and Amherst hovers just below at No. 14. The good news for a Tufts team that has fallen out of the top 30 is that Amherst may not be playing its best tennis of the season.
"Amherst just lost to Bowdoin," Eng said. "Amherst always seems to have a little lull, and most years we catch them at their hot point, but right now they are not playing their best. We just have to go in there and play hard, and we have a shot. We have to play very, very well, elevate our doubles and play tough singles."
The Jumbos have confidence and poise heading into the coming matches and expect to have both Trott and Rosen back and healthy to complete their already potent singles lineup and improving doubles squad.
