Even before the Wesleyan men’s tennis team took the court for its first round match-up in the NESCAC Tournament, the season could already be chalked up as a success.

“Our team had a remarkable year, qualifying for the NESCAC Tournament for the first time in Wesleyan history and recording wins against strong teams,” said captain Michael Glen ’13. “I think I speak for the whole team when I say that we are extremely proud of what we accomplished this season.”

The Cardinals left campus late Thursday night, heading for Amherst in hopes of continuing their impressive run. A rematch against Bates College—whom Wesleyan had faced just a week earlier—ensured the opposing sides would be ready for each other.

In their previous meeting, the Cardinals had traveled north for a road match against Bates just a day after competing against Colby College. The result left more to be desired, as Wesleyan ultimately fell in its first match-up 6-3.

With a week of preparation and enough time to fully rest, the team felt as though its second match-up in the NESCAC Tournament would be anyone’s game to win. Prior to Friday’s contest, Glen had observed his team’s chances, saying, “We have what it takes to succeed in the postseason and I am confident we can execute well enough to win.”

Wesleyan entered competition having recently been nationally ranked 26th in Division III and ninth in the Northeast. Not to be outdone, Bates began the day with a number-25 national ranking for Division III and held the sixth spot in the Northeast.

Ultimately, the Bobcats were a bit too much for Wesleyan to handle. After a couple of freak injuries that threw Wesleyan off course, Bates had just enough to squeak by with a 5-3 victory.

The highlights for the Cardinals came, once again, at the number-two doubles spot as well as the number- four and number-six singles spots. The pairing of captain Jeff Legunn ’13 and freshman Mike King ’16 continued its dominant doubles play and rebounded from its loss the week before. The tandem coasted to an 8-5 victory and improved its spring record to 12-1.

In singles play Legunn again shined, taking down his opponent 6-4, 6-0 at the number-four seed and grabbed two crucial points for a Wesleyan team fighting for victory. The great performance ultimately serves as a testament to the four years of hard work the captain devoted to Wesleyan’s program.

“Jeff did awesome, as usual” Glen remarked. “I am happy that his last match ended so positively for him on a personal level. He deserved all of the success that came to him this season.”

Ben Hudson ’15 grabbed the Cardinals’ last point on the day in his number-six singles match. Hudson took his match easily, 6-1, 6-3 while in front of a surprising amount of Wesleyan faithfuls who made the voyage to support their squad. The last victory in the NESCAC Tournament improved Hudson’s season record to 9-4 and may have solidified a role for the rising junior on next year’s squad.

Though the Cardinals were disappointed with the day’s results, the overwhelming sentiment was much more positive.

“It was great seeing how hard everyone fought, and the amount of heart everyone showed during their matches,” said Alex Rachlin ’15. “We competed, ran for every ball, and pushed our opponent to the limit. Bates has a very solid team, and we really challenged their mental game…. Sure we would have loved to be on the other end of the score, but we know that this match was very important for our program’s future. We gained confidence and know that we deserve to be a nationally ranked team because of the hard work we put into this season.”

This optimism about the future will be the driving force that guides Wesleyan’s men’s tennis program toward the next level. Unsatisfied with merely one winning season, the Cardinals hope to build on the successes of this spring as the calendar pushes forward.

“It was unfortunate that the season ended with such close matches to Bates,” Rachlin added. “However, this season definitely ended on a very high note…I feel we are the most strongly knit team out there with the greatest urge to not only improve, but also to compete.  We are one of the most enthusiastic, hard working, and dedicated teams in the nation. More importantly, we are hungry for more.”