The men’s and women’s tennis teams both carded losses against Marist College this past weekend, with the men’s team adding an additional loss against Long Island University (LIU). The women’s team’s match against LIU was canceled. All three losses of the weekend had a final score of 6-1.

Junior Nash Lovallo notched a win in singles for the men’s team against Marist, while freshman Arman Ganchi won his singles match against LIU.

Despite the loss, the Leopards still feel confident in turning their season around and look forward to the Patriot League play coming up. This point of the season is where things really start to ramp up.

“We’ve been playing some great teams and haven’t really had the results we’ve wanted,” Lovallo said. “But we feel like we can compete with any team we play against. We know where we are now and where we need to be.”

In women’s doubles matches, the team of freshman Olivia Boeckman and senior Maureen McCormack and the team of juniors Jessica Siegel and Halle DeNardo secured the doubles point. 

“We had four singles matches go to third set tiebreakers, so it was definitely a close one,” Boeckman said. “We were right there with them, and it was just a couple of points that led Marist to victory.

Boekman said the team adapted and persevered despite tough conditions.

“This is a strong sign as this will make normal conditions even easier to play in. The strenuous matches this past weekend are great preparation for the fierce competition we have coming up,” she said.

With conference play now beginning, the Leopards will look to see how their game compares to other teams in the Patriot League. 

“I’m excited for the league championship this year,” Lovallo said. “I love the mentality that the team has had in practice all year and these upcoming conference weekend matches should give us a good gauge of where we stand in the League.”

The Leopards focus on doubles strategies down the stretch of a long season.

“We are going to continue strengthening our doubles play and getting more comfortable charging the net. The doubles point is crucial in college tennis,” Boeckman said. “So, we will continue to work on strategies in practice. It definitely helps being outdoors as we can improve our stamina and have more room for practice.”

This weekend, the squads will travel to West Point to take on three Patriot League opponents. The men’s team will face off against Army today at 9 a.m. and the women’s team will play at 12 p.m. Tomorrow, they will face Loyola Maryland at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m, respectively. Finally, the teams will face Holy Cross on Sunday, also at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m, respectively.

“The next month is going to be filled with hard work and intensity so that we are performing our best going into the League Championship,” Boeckman said.