Spring season competition concludes

It was the end of the road for two Skidmore spring sports, as men’s and women’s tennis both saw their tremendous seasons come to a close after fighting their way into the NCAA Division III Championships Round of 16.

Men’s tennis battled its way to the NCAA Division III Championship round of 16 before falling to No. 2 Amherst. The team rolled past Southern Maine, 5-0, in the first round, sweeping doubles before Ted Berkowitz ’18 and Max Swerdlick ’17 notched 6-0, 6-0 singles wins at number five and number six, respectively, to end the match.

In the second round, the 30th-ranked Thoroughbreds avenged a regular-season loss to No. 22 Stevens Tech, grinding out a 5-4 win to advance to the program’s third ever regional finals. Kit Sanderson ’16 and Lucas Pickering ’18 paired for an 8-5 win at number-one doubles and Kai Yuen Leung ’17 and Nick Tong ’16 won 8-6 at number two, giving the team a 2-1 lead heading into singles. Every singles match was a battle with three of six contests going into three sets. Leung beat the Matt Heinrich 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 at number one and Max Swerdlick was a 6-2, 6-0 winner at number six. Sanderson clinched the match with a dramatic 6-3, 6-7, 7-5 victory over Ben Foran at number two. After splitting the first two sets, Sanderson went up 5-3 in the third, but Foran came back, breaking serve to tie it 5-5.  Sanderson regrouped and won the next two games to take the match for the Thoroughbreds. Following the exhausting second-round win, the team was halted by host No. 2 Amherst in a 5-0 decision.

Leung’s season will continue as he competes in the NCAA Division III Singles Championship next week. He was named the Liberty League Player of the Year and All-Liberty League First Team Singles and All-Liberty League First Team Doubles with teammate Nick Tong ’16. Sanderson was also named to the first team in singles, while Steven Koulouris ’18 was named the conference’s Rookie of the Year and All-Liberty League Second Team. The Thoroughbreds won their second straight and eighth overall Liberty League championship this season.

After receiving a bye for the first round, women’s tennis took down Babson, 5-2, in the second round. The 16th-ranked Thoroughbreds stormed back in two doubles matches to take a 2-1 lead into singles. Erica Meno ’18 and Michelle Fuca ’18 fought back from a 6-4 deficit at number three doubles to secure an 8-6 win and Brianna Greene ’18 and Caroline Finnegan ’18 secured a 8-6 win at number two after falling behind 5-3. Greene added a straight-set win at number three singles and Fuca put the team a way away from clinching the match with a 6-4, 6-2 win at number five. Meno sealed the win with a 6-3, 6-4 victory at number four, sending the team to the round of 16. The Thoroughbreds competed hard but could not find a way past host No. 1 Williams. The Ephs registered a 5-0 win, advancing to NCAA quarterfinals for the eight consecutive year and extending their winning streak to 22 matches.

The Thoroughbreds finished the season with an overall record of 14-9, including a perfect 7-0 record in league play en route to their fifth consecutive Liberty League title. Zoe Valella ’15, Yumi Karlshoej ’15, Madie Benn ’17,Greene, Meno, Finnegan, Fuca and Danielle Giannetti ’18 all garnered All-Liberty League honors. ~ By Dan St.-Jacques