Often overshadowed in the NESCAC by traditional powers Amherst and Middlebury, the Wesleyan men’s tennis team appears ready to turn some heads with an up-and-coming group that experienced minimal roster losses from the past season. Coach Ken Alrutz returns for his seventh season at Wesleyan, with a roster looking to improve a promising, yet frustrating, ’09-10 campaign.
The Cardinal men jumped out to an undefeated 5-0 record in the fall of the 2009-2010 season, but struggled in the spring to the tune of 4-10. With a lineup that featured five of the six singles spots filled by freshmen, the Cardinals also stumbled to a 1-8 record in NESCAC competition. The lone victory came by a score of 5-4 over the Hamilton Continentals, and the Cardinals suffered close defeats at the hands of Colby and Haverford.
The experience that the young team gained last season will likely be its greatest strength in the coming year. There were no members of the class of 2010 on last year’s team, allowing them to return all ten players for the upcoming season. The Cardinals will likely rely on top player Jeff Legunn ’13 to carry the load once again this year. The current sophomore compiled a 10-7 singles record playing in Wesleyan’s number one singles slot, facing the very best the competition had to offer in his first collegiate season. Legunn also made up half of the #1 doubles team alongside Michael Piderit ’12, who also occupied the number two singles slot; the duo completed last season with a personal winning record of 8-7.
The competition to fill the remaining four singles slots will likely come down to a battle between members of the class of 2013. Alex Hirsch ’13 and Ravy Uong ’13 are the most probable candidates of a group that includes Michael Glen ’13, Don Kleckner ’13, and John Parsons ’13. Hirsch and Uong seem to be headed for the third and fourth singles slots in some order, while the remaining two slots will be determined by the health of Parsons. Parsons was in the midst of a promising inaugural season last year prior to losing his season to an injury. If he recovers in time, he has the talent to rise through Wesleyan’s ranks, and either Glen or Kleckner may find himself the odd man out.
The only thing standing in the way of Wesleyan fielding a highly competitive Division III men’s tennis team is its lackluster in-conference play. While Wesleyan is not in the rarified air of national championship competitors, if co-captains Garrett Blank ’11 and Steve Hauser ’11 can push the Cardinals to compete more strongly in conference play we may see Wesleyan going deeper into May this season than in years past. Men’s Cardinal tennis will open up its fall season on Saturday, Sept. 11, as the squad heads to Massachusetts to take on the Nichols College Bison.