March 29, 2012
A shake up of the coaches for the men’s and women’s tennis teams has transformed both teams into forces ready to shake up the NESCAC this spring.
Under the guidance head coach Rob Barr, who joined the team this past fall, and Assistant Coach Bob Kaufman, who just joined this spring, the men’s team returned from their spring training trip to Florida undefeated; the women’s team returned with only one loss in their match against Carthage.
In addition to the new coaching staff, it doesn’t hurt that both teams are full of successful and experienced older players to complement some strong new players.
On the women’s team in particular, freshman standout Carrie Uhlein put in a strong performance over break and many of the older players believe she will continue to add great momentum to the team.
The women’s team, led by seniors Hannah Weisman and Amelia Mattern, suffered a loss in their opening match of the season against Middlebury, but have high hopes for the rest of the season.
As sophomore Sara Shaughnessy said, “ I’m expecting great things for the upcoming season. Everyone on our team is really dedicated to the sport and Coach Barr has really stepped it up to a new level this year.”
The men’s team has equally high hopes for a successful spring season. With the combination of a deep line up of experienced and talented players and the eager new coaching staff, the men seem poised to go far this season. Despite losing to Middlebury before their trip to Florida, they returned to Hamilton undefeated for the trip.
“Under the new coaching staff things are really starting to come together and we are showing great signs of improvement,” Jon Franzel ’13, one of the team’s strongest players, commented on the upcoming season.
Coby Berman ’12 added his take on this positive outlook: “Out of my four years on the team I think this is the best team I’ve played for and I think we will have some great NESCAC wins.”
Both teams have the chance to prove themselves this weekend against the Rochester Insititue of Techonology. The men’s team will be playing in Rochester, but come out to support the women’s team at home on Saturday, March 31 at 1 p.m.