The afternoon started out promising for the Big Green (3-1, 0-0 Ivy), who dominated the Bearcats (1-2) in doubles play to pick up the first point of the match.
Captain Dave Waslen '07 and Daniel Freeman '10, the 32nd-ranked doubles team in the country, were up 7-5 when the Bearcats broke their serve and captured a break point.
"Dan and I are big servers, so we like to dominate while we're serving and then work hard to get at least one break," Waslen said. "We got two breaks, and they got one."
The duo of Waslen and Freeman overcame the setback and went on to win the match, 8-6.
The second doubles tandem of Jeffrey Schechtman '08 and Steve McGaughey '07 found themselves in a tight match with Moshe Levy and Alex Dobrin, but Dartmouth prevailed, 9-7 (3). Ari Gayer '09 and Justin Tzou '10 easily won the third doubles match 8-3 to complete the sweep.
In the singles matches, Waslen turned in an impressive debut to the winter season, beating the Bearcats's No. 1 player Faisal Mohmad in straight sets, 6-4, 6-2. Tzou and Gayer also won in straight sets in the No. 4 and 5 spots, respectively.
Freeman had a tough match in the No. 2 spot, splitting the first two sets with Bearcat rival Pierre Clavel, 6-3 and 2-6 before dominating the final set by a score of 6-2. This victory was a confidence-builder for the freshman, who appeared to tweak his ankle during the second set.
McGaughey also took three sets to dispatch Jon Bonnet in the No. 6 position. The only Big Green player to drop a singles match was Schechtman, who lost in straight sets to Levy, 6-4, 6-4.
The make-up of this year's tennis team is different from that of years past. Half of the 14 members of this year's team are freshman. This could bode well for the program in the future as these players gain experience in varsity competition.
"We definitely have a young team and it meshes nicely with the experienced guys. The older guys help the freshman with how the matches work," Waslen said.
Although the team had matches and invitational tournaments in the fall and the ECAC tournament early in the winter, the spring will bring the most important matches on the Big Green's schedule, including contests against Ivy League opponents.
"We consider the winter the start of team tennis, and every match from now until the end of April are team matches," Waslen said. "We have a great schedule and the difficulty level increases as the season goes on, and as long as we improve and get tougher we should be in really good shape for the spring."
Dartmouth tennis has an interesting schedule this winter and spring. On the docket are weekend matches in North Carolina and an eight-game road trip to southern California in March.
"This year we're lucky that all the guys on the team are able to travel. Also, we'll be playing outdoors, which will be great preparation for the spring when all of our matches will be outside," Waslen said.
This opportunity in outdoor competition could be key for the Big Green, as it will provide valuable practice time for a team that went winless in Ivy League play in the 2005-2006 season. The win over Binghamton was a step in the right direction, as the Bearcats had an impressive 14-6 record last year.
The Big Green's next four matches are all at home, including a double header on Saturday, Feb. 3 against Stony Brook at 9 a.m. and Marist at 3 p.m. Dartmouth will also face Boston College and Manhattan College during its home stand. Last year, Dartmouth came away victorious in all three matches against Stony Brook, Manhattan and BC. The Big Green will begin conference matches on Friday, April 6 when it faces Columbia in Hanover.
