In the weeks ahead, the women's tennis team will have to contend against the best competition in the NESCAC. But for now, the Jumbos are certainly having fun feasting on the soft underbelly of their conference schedule.
On Wednesday afternoon in Middletown, Conn., nationally ranked No. 17 Tufts ran over Wesleyan 9−0 for its third shutout victory of the last week. Outside of third doubles — in which freshman Lauren Hollender and junior Edwina Stewart eked out a 9−7 win — the Jumbos were virtually unchallenged throughout the lineup. Stewart won love−and−love at No. 4 singles, while Hollender, fellow freshman Lindsay Katz and junior tri−captain Julia Browne each yielded just one game in their respective singles matches.
Wednesday's outcome kept up a recent stretch of dominance for Tufts, which also trounced Colby and Bates by 9−0 margins over the weekend. Since returning from a spring break trip to Florida, the Jumbos have won all of the 36 singles sets they've played and surrendered just 24 games across nine doubles matches.
"We really took control of our matches and just played every single point to win it," senior tri−captain Meghan McCooey said. "It's kind of easy to go out there when your opponent is maybe weaker and have a few loose points and let a game or two slip away from you, but everyone throughout the lineup was so focused on winning every point and winning every game and not giving up anything."
The scores of Tufts' recent contests are, at least in part, a reflection of the level of its competition. Of the Jumbos' last three opponents, none are nationally ranked, and only Colby has placed someone on the All−NESCAC First Team in the last five years.
But beginning next weekend, Tufts will enter a potentially season−defining stretch of its schedule, which will include contests against defending NCAA champion Williams, national No. 1 Amherst and two other conference rivals ranked in the top 15 in Middlebury and Bowdoin. Before it dives headfirst into the brutal homestretch of its regular season, Tufts will use Wednesday's match, as well as those this weekend against Trinity and Hamilton, to help develop a winning mentality.
"I think what we're trying to get is the confidence and the mindset of winning every single point," McCooey said. "By the time we start playing those teams that are maybe a little bit tougher, we want to have that confidence and be able to just go out there and play our best tennis without even thinking about it. These matches have helped us build all of that."
For Hollender and Stewart, Wednesday afternoon showed that the pair can dig deep when it matters most. After taking a commanding lead in its third doubles match against Wesleyan's tandem of senior Casey Simchik and freshman Taylor Morales, the Tufts duo was able to withstand a late charge and improve to 4−3 on the spring.
"We were up by a lot, and we started overthinking things maybe or just getting a little bit nervous, so it became much closer than it should have been," Hollender said. "But we're just learning from all these matches, and I think we're definitely taking something away from each one. It was really important for us to be able to close that [Wesleyan match] out, and we know that when things get really close, we can pull through."
In addition to working on the mental parts of their game, the Jumbos have been developing chemistry with their doubles partners. On Wednesday against Wesleyan, Tufts featured the exact same doubles lineup as its previous seven matches, with Browne and McCooey on top, Katz and classmate Janice Lam in the second spot, and Hollender and Stewart at No. 3. The consistency of the doubles lineup stands in stark contrast to what coach Kate Bayard did last season when she used 16 different combinations at second and third doubles alone.
"I think that definitely helps you get mentally prepared for matches," Hollender said. "Even though [Bayard] doesn't set the lineup 'til the day of, if you have a sense that you know where you're playing, it helps you get in that mindset earlier than just the warm−up before the first match. You sort of just get into a rhythm playing with the same person every time."
On the same day that they collected their seventh dual−match victory of the season, the Jumbos were also announced as the recipients of the ITA's National Sportsmanship Award, which they received thanks to a nomination from an undisclosed team or coach. The distinction capped a great day for Tufts both on and off the court.
"It was such a huge honor," McCooey said. "[Sportsmanship] is a part of the game that doesn't have to do with skill, but it's such an important part of the game, and it's something that we always talk about. We always say ‘nice job' to our opponent, and our coach won't accept us throwing our racket or behavior like that on the court.
"It's nice to know that other teams notice and appreciate our good sportsmanship enough to nominate us for an award like that," she continued. "We were really, really honored, and I'm really proud of our team."
