The Bowdoin Orient

April 6, 2001
Volume CXXXII, Number 20

Tennis to face MIT, Babson

by MAIA LEE, STAFF WRITER

   As if you'd need another reason to spend your weekend at MIT, the men's tennis team will be playing against the Engineers this Sunday (that really is their mascot, by the way). The Polar Bears expect an exciting game, as MIT is one of their biggest rivals. "We anticipate a great season all around," said Louis Plough '03. "Last season was the best in Bowdoin's history." The team was ranked 16th at the end of last year and their preseason ranking puts them 15th in the nation for Division III.
   The men's tennis players have already started out with a strong record. They spent their spring break in Hilton Head, South Carolina, claiming many notable victories including a 7-0 win against the Coast Guard. In addition, they defeated Wesleyan and Principia, both by a score of 6-1.
   Skidmore and Luther went much like the Coast Guard, winning not a single match. "We started out strong on our trip to South Carolina and that was the spark that the team needed," said Bowdoin head coach, Jane Paterson.
   "Our first years gained a lot of confidence and that translated into some clutch wins during critical matches. We'll look to match last year's recipe this spring."
   Coach Paterson has been coaching both the men's and women's tennis teams for three years. During her career as Bowdoin's tennis coach, she has helped them achieve a 16-3 record, the best in school history. She also saw them advance to the NCAA second round for only the second time.
   This year, coach Paterson hopes to look towards the future. She has built the men's tennis team of younger players, mostly sophomores, five first years, and one Senior, Evan Klein, who is also the captain.
   Joining the team this year are John Carolan '04 who plays number five in singles, Pat Soong '04, sixth in singles and third in doubles, Ed Holmes '04, who plays second doubles alongside sophomore Nicolas MacLean. Other doubles players are first-years John Posie, Peter Carter, and Fred Warburg. Returning veterans include sophomores August Felker, Colin Joyner, Louis Plough, Andy Miness, and MacLean.
   Joyner and Felker look forward to this season, especially after having advanced to the NCAA championship doubles tournament last year. Their overall record was an impressive 19-7, with a record of 14-3 in dual matches. "Colin and August are fierce competitors and they work very hard to be prepared for every match," said Paterson. "Whether it is in doubles or singles, they feed off each other's energy and give us great strength at the top of the line up."
   In addition to playing MIT this weekend, the Polar Bears will face off against Babson on Saturday. "You don't need to worry about Babson. They equal Joke. We expect to beat everybody. We're not going to lose to anyone," said Plough.
   The Polar Bears' first on-campus matches are next weekend. They play Tufts on the 13th, Middlebury on the 14th, and NYU the next day.
   Their most exciting match of the season should come on April 22 when they return to Amherst to claim a victory that should have been theirs a year ago.
   "That's a big one," said Plough. "We're out for blood, bro. Last year we were intimidated by the Amherst name. We didn't play our game. But now we're back and we're better than ever. Definitely."

A tennis stroke is a terrible thing to waste.
(File photo/Bowdoin Orient)