The men?s tennis team encountered two difficult challenges last weekend as it traveled on the road to battle No. 11 ranked Trinity College and No. 18 ranked Swarthmore College. The Yellowjackets put up potent fronts and the men proved to be no match for both Goliaths and surrendered two 7-0 losses.
UR came off a dominating performance from the previous week when it upset No. 23 ranked Kenyon College. With the confidence builder, UR eagerly strove to take on Trinity and Swarth-more, which boast some of the best Div. III players in the nation.
Yet that fire-like spirit needed to drive them past the strong opponents just did not seem to carry over from the previous victory.
?Even though these were tough teams, they were definitely beatable at every position,? freshman and first-seed Colin Ryan said.
?Things just did not click for us in either match. Swarthmore and Trinity both had very deep teams similar to ours, but that certain spark or edge just was not there for us.?
?I think the general feeling throughout the team is that we just did not bring our best tennis to the courts,? he continued.
Ryan, and along with freshman and second-seed Dan Williford, were the only Yellowjackets able to send either of their matches to three sets last weekend.
While these weekend losses might have weighed heavily mentally on the team, the Yellowjackets focus on the importance of the learning experience.
?We came off a strong win last week, but we realized after this weekend that we need to work even harder to improve ourselves in order to get to the nationals,? junior and fourth-seed Anton Orlin said.
Swarthmore and Trinity mark-ed the last two matches of UR?s regular season, giving the Yellow-jackets somewhat of a misleading 7-6 record.
When asked about his overall thoughts on the teams accomplishments this season, Ryan thought that the ?team definitely has impressed me. We showed top ranked schools that we can hang with them if not take them out.?
?I think next year we will have a team that is more experienced in playing together and a chance to make a dent in the schedule we face,? Ryan said. ?The deep talent we have is so great that hard work and mental toughness will give us a chance to accomplish the unthinkable.?
The next portion of the men?s schedule is more relaxed this week, with a mix of both rest and practice.
In the meantime they are preparing for the University Athletic Association Championships, which will take place at UR between April 20-22.
It is at the Championships the Yellowjac-kets hope to knock off high ranked teams such as New York State University and Carnegie Mellon University in order to increase their chances of getting into the national championships.
The following weekend, the Yellowjackets will participate in the University Collegiate Athletic Association Championships, where it will be riled up to defeat Skidmore College again and grab the title for the second straight year.
?We look to be ready,? Ryan said.
