A win in the Northwest Conference Championship match on Saturday, April 18 prolonged the end of the season for Whitman Men’s tennis.
The 7-2 victory over Pacific Lutheran at the NWC Championship Tournament in Yakima, Wash. earned them a berth in the upcoming regional tournament. After their third consecutive year of sweeping the NWC, the team will face eight to ten of the strongest West coast teams in the upcoming. Whoever wins at regionals will join the final four in nationals in Claremont, Cali. The men’s team hopes to compete well in regionals, thereby securing a spot in nationals.
With an overall record of 24-4 and a perfect 16-0 in the NWC, the team closed their regular season having satisfied conference expectations.
“It was a pretty good season. It was the first year we won back to back titles in conferences since the 1980s,” said captain Justin Hayashi, who in his four years at Whitman has seen his team accumulate a 68-3 record in conference games.
The team entered the weekend at No. 26 in the nation and will enter the national competition in the coming weeks.
To achieve the success they did, the men’s tennis team spent over 30 hours a week together, from the daily two to four hour practice, to the week-end long trips in various locations.
“We really are like a family. I know its cliché, but it’s true. You know what everyone’s going to say before they say it: it’s entertaining,” said first-year teammate Conor Holton-Burke.
The first-year had a particular good year according to Hayashi.
“This freshmen class was probably the most fit freshmen class I’ve seen,” said Hayashi. “In fitness training, they won. And since the biggest leap occurs from freshmen to sophomore year, in terms of performance, I’m expecting really big things to come.”
The men’s tennis team looks forward to a bright future later this spring and next season, despite setbacks including losing their top singles player Etienne Moshevich for much of the season due to shoulder problems.
“It was amazing to see even when we had a bad match, we pulled through it. Our down days never really hurt us,” said Holton-Burke.
First-year Adriel Borshansky realized this dynamic after losing a tough singles match at the end of the NWC Championships after the team had already won as a team. Coach Jeff Northam approached him, put a hand on his shoulder and said, “Today you experienced the beauty of a team sport.”
“I had never really experienced that feeling before and it was really good –– losing a personal match, but having such as victory as a team,” said Borshansky.
The team sentiment Borshansky experienced was universally present among all teammates. The excellent team dynamics and sense of camaraderie unified the team, solidifying a successful season.
Overall, captain Hayashi was really happy with the team’s performance throughout the season and especially at the NWC Championships.
“It’s great to cap off the season with another conference title and another shot at the national title,” said Hayashi. “We got tough obstacles in the way, but we’re hungry for it.”
