Jumbos finish eighth in sectional championships

Every year, matriculation sees the arrival of dozens of new Tufts students with tennis experience. Whether it was 10-and-under tennis lessons at a local park, or more intense training at internationally acclaimed American academies like the Nick Bollettieri IMG Tennis Academy, Jumbos tend to have some kind of experience with a racquet.

As a result, it is no surprise that the Tufts club tennis team is one of the most popular club sports teams on the Hill. After a period of time where it took most players who tried out, the team has recently been forced to hold tryouts with cuts to field a final roster. The squad has evolved into one where students are both committed to playing and performing at a high level.

“Well I tried out for the team last year [and it was] very competitive," sophomore Daniel Baigel said. "Only 10-12 guys made it out of the 80-100 that tried out. It was equally competitive for girls. Club tennis attracts all the kids that played tennis in high school that didn't want to have the commitment of playing on the varsity team so the overall skill level is very high.”

This year was no different, as the team had to make major cuts once again.

"This year was one of the most competitive years for tryouts that we have ever had," senior captain Christian Thienel said. "We had about 65 students participate and it was truly a shame that any of them had to be cut, as they were all good enough to play on a college club team."

Both male and female students try out for the same team due to the unique competitive format that most club tennis teams across the nation have adopted. Alongside husband Larry King, tennis legend and women’s rights pioneer Billie Jean King created and helped form modern Jr. Team Tennis, the competitive league-like format now used by all United States Tennis Association (USTA) registered club teams in the nation.The format, which requires that each team be comprised of both men and women, focuses on singles and doubles play and is used at the most important club tennis event during the fall season.

The United States Tennis On Campus Section Championships, held this past weekend, determined the five teams from the Northeast that will compete in the 2015 National Championships held in Cary, N.C. in April.Had Tufts finished in the top spot, the team would have been eligible to receive a $1,000 travel stipend from USTA New England to attend the Championships. But the team finished eighth, falling three spots short of qualifying. 

Due to the depth of the New England sections, the Jumbos competed against some of the strongest club tennis teams in the nation.The tournament followed the World Team Tennis format, each match consisting of five no-ad sets, including men’s and women’s doubles, men’s and women’s singles and mixed doubles. The scoring of each match isn’t compiled in the way varsity tennis teams are accustomed to. Instead, every match is scored based on the total number of games won per match.

“Team tennis format takes a little getting used to and makes the games more stressful because a single point could determine a match,” Baigel said.

Each school is only allowed to send one team to compete, where a minimum of three women and three men must participate. Most teams bring up to the maximum, which is ten, with no more than five players of each gender.

The tournament format was fixed with eight pool groups of three teams each. This was followed up by bracket play, where the top eight teams were placed in the gold bracket. Teams in this bracket competed against each other in hopes of coming out in the top fives teams overall. 

Some players are skeptical of the unique tournament structure and scoring.

"Personally, I don’t like it very much, however, it creates some exciting situations," Thienel said. "Entire matches can come down to a single point and it is always possible to come back and win the match in mixed doubles. It’s also nice that you only have to play one set of singles, doubles and mixed because it would be pretty hard to have someone play two or more full matches in a day."

To start the tournament, the Jumbos took down both Holy Cross and University of Vermont to get to the gold bracket. Once there, the Jumbos lost by a two-game margin to Northeastern University. With the loss they also let go of any chance of reaching the National Championships.

The team finished eighth out of 25 teams overall, making Tufts the highest-placed team whose varsity counterpart plays in Div. III in the Northeast.

"While a couple of line calls went against us in the Northeastern match, it was a competitive, high-energy matchup," junior Danny Feld said. "Regardless of the result, Sectionals gave our team a great opportunity to bond over a weekend chock full of tennis. There was definitely a high-level of competition this year, and Tufts Club Tennis looks forward to playing in next year's tournament."

In last season’s Section Championships, the Jumbos made it all the way to the quarterfinals, narrowly losing to Harvard. The year before, Tufts was able to come out as one of the top five and qualify for the National Championships. Once there, the team came in third within its pool.

"While we play our strongest lineup at Sectionals once a year, we pride ourselves on facilitating competitive yet fun tennis on the Tufts campus," senior Reid Spagna said in an email to the Daily. "Not only does our club allow long-time players to keep playing the sport that they love, but it also provides a venue to foster new friendships between students with a common interest. We've found this to be particularly true with the underclassmen, especially the Class of 2018. We are very proud of our new players' enthusiasm and energy, and look forward to competing with them for the rest of the season."

One of the team’s goals is to field a competitive team in order to keep the level high within the team as well as when playing other squads. The more relaxed atmosphere of club tennis is something that many find appealing.

“It's a totally unique way to play tennis and a great way to continue to enjoy the sport in college,” junior varsity men’s tennis player Rob Jacobson said. “I also think the format is really cool, as it puts a lot of pressure on each individual point, and allows for players to substitute in and out during matches.”

Moving forward, the Tufts club tennis team will look to have fun and enjoy their time on the court.

"Our goal for every season is to have fun, whether playing tennis or not," Thienel said. "We provide our members with the opportunity to challenge themselves on the court and build friendships off the court. We obviously want to contend for the sectional title and obtain a bid to the national tournament, but the Sectionals team had a great time spending the weekend together, as we always do."