Big Green tennis opened strong this year, more than holding its own in the annual Volkl Shootout. Competing at home against Army, Colgate, Niagara and the University of Buffalo, Dartmouth finished the three-day tournament boasting a 23-11 singles record and a dominant 11-2 mark in doubles.
Priya Sahu '05, Jeff Schechtman '08, Dave Waslen '07 and Andres Reyes '05 swept four of the six singles divisions, while the Big Green's top two players -- David Webb '05 and Steve McGaughey '07 -- finished third and fourth in their respective flights. On the doubles side, the Big Green boasted two winners, Sahu and Logan West '05 in the B-Division and Waslen and Schechtman at the C-level. Dartmouth's top doubles team, co-captains Reyes and Webb, grabbed third.
Although the Big Green performed well by nearly every standard, Dartmouth still has a ways to go before bringing home an Ivy League title. Talented but young, the tennis program must find a way to replace Neal Bobba, Drew Dinkmeyer, Borko Kereshi, and Jesse Paer, all members of the Class of 2004.
"The loss of four starters would be significant to any team," head coach Chuck Kinyon admitted. "The biggest problem is getting the guys on this team enough match opportunity to fill in their lack of experience."
However, as Dartmouth prepares for its next tournament, no one will be dwelling on the past. Led by Waslen, Schechtman and McGaughey, a new crop of Big Green athletes are poised to push their team to the next level.
"I am very excited about the upcoming season," Reyes said. "We lost a great bunch of 04s who accounted for about two thirds of our starting lineup, but the sophomores and the new class of freshmen have already stepped up to fill the void left by the graduating seniors."
The College resumes action Friday for the weekend-long Yale Invitational.
