For the first time since 2012, Tufts club tennis is the only team from Div. III schools in the northeast to qualify for nationals, after clinching the fifth and final qualifying spot at sectionals at Harvard University. This was a high-intensity tournament with 29 teams in attendance playing for the coveted top five seeds in order to make it to nationals. Tufts was one of the only Div. III schools facing off against other Div. I and Ivy League schools, but the team did not let this deter them.
“The Ivy League is definitely one of the best tennis leagues in the country, as you might expect, and so we were the underdogs going into every match we played, including the first round, so it was good to come out as the underdog,” junior Derick Yang said.
The team won its first match against UMass Amherst, but then fell to Yale in its second match, earning a spot in the consolation bracket. In order to qualify, the team had to then win the consolation bracket to clinch the final spot. The team then faced Brown and was challenged by Brown’s number one player, who was ranked No. 46 in the country. Going into that match, Tufts led by eight games. Brown slowly chewed away at that deficit, but was unable to surpass Tufts and the team pulled away with a two game lead.
The team then faced off against Dartmouth in its final round, to determine which team earned a berth to nationals. The men’s doubles pair lost 6-2 and the women’s doubles pair won 6-2. At this point Tufts and Dartmouth were tied 8-8. After the singles matches, Tufts was down one game, 17-16, heading into the final match of the tournament, the mixed doubles. First-years Darren Ting and Zeynep Lir started this match down 3-1 (putting the team score down by a total of 3 matches), and Ting subbed himself out so that Yang could sub in. Yang then led the doubles pair to four straight wins, and in the last point of the match, it was winner-takes-all. Dartmouth missed its volley, handing the final nationals bid to Tufts.
“When we were playing, especially that last match against Dartmouth, we realized right away after the first point which they won that this was going to be a cheering battle,” sophomore Dylan Sivori said. "When you are on the court and the other team’s side is cheering that much, it can get in your head no matter how good you are at blocking it out, so having the team there to cheer you on no matter what and pump you up just makes it an even playing field. It makes a complete difference in your mentality to keep fighting."
Team chemistry was a big factor in the team's success, as the roster had an influx of enthusiastic first-years who had an immense impact on the team’s overall mentality and positivity. Nationals has been a team goal for a year now, so when manager junior Suvi Rajadurai and Yang walked into the general interest meeting at the beginning of the year and told the team that they were going to nationals, the team was ready to take on the challenge. While tennis is typically more of an individual sport, the uncanny team chemistry was one of the biggest motivating factors for the players.
“It was an electric atmosphere, I think we were the two loudest teams there, after every single point both benches were screaming, win or lose ... We really just wanted to cheer on our team and keep their morale up and it worked,” sophomore Hannah Gould said. "Club tennis is the best part of my week and definitely my favorite thing since I got to Tufts."
Now that the official club tennis season is over, the team is able to practice and work individually on match play and technique until nationals, which take place from April 13-15 in Orlando, Florida. Another goal of the team is fundraising, so that all of the players can be a part of the experience at nationals in April.
“We are hoping we can make enough to subsidize the cost because playing club sports is a privilege, but when you fight for something like qualifying for nationals it’s awesome to have everyone who was involved have the opportunity to go and participate," Rajadurai said. "I would hate to see someone who couldn’t afford to go who was such a big part of our team, [and] that applies to everyone because everyone on our team, even those who didn’t play at sectionals, brings some element to practice its inherent to tennis everyone plays differently."
Tufts club tennis earns berth to nationals in Florida
