After losing a dominant player like Dan Hanegby in the off-season, the men’s tennis team proved this fall they can succeed without him.
“Losing Dan provided an enormous gap in the team especially in his off-court presence,” said head coach Michael Starke. “The team really came together by the end of the fall and overall. I am very happy.”
The fall ended this past weekend for the men’s tennis team (3-1) as four players competed in the ITA Northeast Regional hosted by Dartmouth. The doubles team of senior Brian O’Connor and junior Aurelio Martinez advanced to the second round with an 8-3 win, but were eliminated in the round of 32 with an 8-4 loss to the 14th-seeded team from Virginia Tech.
“I think that [Martinez and I] complemented each other,” O’Connor said. “It’s a lot of pressure; you wait around all day and then play one match. It’s a different feeling.”
“Aurelio and Brian looked great but couldn’t buy a break,” Starke added. “At the next level of tennis, they are hitting the ball quicker, faster, and it’s taking us time to adjust.”
Seniors Richemn Mourad and Edwin Gerard made up the other doubles team for the Bearcats, losing 8-4 in their first round match against the ninth-seeded team from Harvard.
“Edwin and I came out of the gates strong,” Mourad said. “They started playing amazing and it was kind of hard to reverse that situation.”
Martinez also played singles, but was defeated in the first round by Brian Hartness of Boston College, 3-6, 7-5, 6-0.
“Aurelio played better than I’ve ever seen him play,” Starke said. “He lost a little steam at the end, but seemed to be energized.”
The team’s crucial wins during the fall came during the ECAC tournament. The Bearcats, as the No. 13 seed, defeated No. 12 seed and America East rival Stony Brook 4-3, and then upset No. 9 American the following day, 5-2.
“I think things went real well,” O’Connor said. “Losing a player like Dan, it’s much different, but as we showed in the ECAC, we are still a very good team.”
While those wins may have been the turning point for the fall season, Binghamton is hoping to carry that momentum into the spring when they return back to the courts on the road at Columbia on Feb. 3.
“We have a ways to go when we have to make a stand in the spring,” Starke added.