Senior men's tennis captain Tim Kofol said last weekend before the Tigers upset Penn, 4-3, that his team had more than just the Ivy League title on the line. After being topped by their rivals at ECACs in the fall, Kofol and the Tigers were looking not only for victory, but for revenge.
This weekend, Princeton tennis will take on both Brown (10-4 overall, 0-0 Ivy League) and Yale (5-8, 0-0), teams that dealt the men's team (7-8, 1-0) brutal losses last Spring. Thus, the Tigers will come out Friday and Saturday ready for a repeat performance of last weekend, in hopes of bettering their current Ivy League record (1-0), to a perfect 3-0, which would place them in excellent position for the league title.
"Last weekend was a warm-up," Kofol said. "We know this weekend will be the main event. We want to come out fighting because we know that every point will be important."
The Tigers proved last weekend that they are in the quest for an Ivy League championship for the long haul. As Kofol noted, after he and freshman Sratha Saengsuwarn lost the doubles point at the No. 2 spot, the Quakers seemed to think they had won it all.
"Penn celebrated the doubles point last weekend like we were going to pack it up and just go home," Kofol said. "But we weren't prepared to leave with anything but victory. We battled back and won our next matches."
The Tigers have been competing all season against top-ranked teams and are becoming used to playing up against pressure and pulling out big victories when the matches get tight.
"We know we're better than these guys," Kofol said. "We know it. We're just here to make sure they know it."
Kofol and the men's team will take on Brown and Yale this Friday and Saturday at the Lenz Tennis Center at home at 2 p.m. and noon respectively. Until then, besides two great victories, one can bet revenge will also be brewing in their minds.
The women's team (4-9, 0-1) will also take on Brown (8-6, 0-0) and Yale (5-8, 0-0) this Friday and Saturday. Coming off a tough 6-1 loss to Penn last weekend, the women are also looking for revenge in their upcoming games.
Despite the ultimate outcome of the Penn match, there were some bright spots that Princeton will look to capitalize on against Brown and Yale.
Last weekend, three of the singles matches against Penn went to third sets, including the No. 2 spot, in which sophomore Alison Hashmall was able to pull out the victory in a 13-11 pro set. Sophomore Jessica Siebel at the No. 3 spot and freshman Laura Trimble at the No. 5 spot fell in the other close singles matches.
Even though some of the matches didn't go their way, the Tigers are optimistic about their play against the No. 35 Quakers.
"Even though we lost last weekend, our singles matches were very close," Trimble said. "This has given us a lot of confidence and momentum to use as we head into this weekend."
As freshman No. 1 singles Darcy Robertson agreed, the team has finally hit a point where it is capable of breaking out of its shell.
"We had a moment, one glorious moment against Penn, in which I was up 5-2, Trimble and Siebel were splitting their matches, and Alison [Hashmall] had won her first, and I could sense the tides turning for us," Robertson said. "Last weekend was the best we've ever played, and we are the most ready we'll ever be for Yale and Brown."
The women will be on the road come this weekend, but they are ready to start bringing home some good results.
"We've hit a crossroad," Robertson said. "Now all we've got to do is play the right way."
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