The men’s tennis team started the weekend at Bates College in the Wallach Invitational. Going into this tournament, they looked to revive their lackluster season and make a serious run into the later rounds. 

The Judges got off to a slow start this season, making a small impact in the first tournament of the year at the Middlebury Invitational. Brian Granoff ’17 pulled the majority of the weight, going all the way to the finals of flight A. Granoff disappointingly lost in straight sets, but he was able to set the stage for the rest of his season. Ryan Bunis ’17 was also placed in the A flight but was unable to get out of the first round, also falling in two straight sets. The B and C flights did not see much improvement, with only Ethan Saal ’18 making it past the second round in the C flight.  However, Bunis and Saal paired up in the flight A doubles, battling all the way to the semi-finals. While the tournament definitely set a low bench-mark for the rest of the season, it gave the Judges a lot of room to improve in the following tournaments.

Yet the Judges were unable to exceed their sub-par marks as the team headed into the United States Tennis Association /Intercollegiate Tennis Association New England Regional Tournament. Granoff’s stellar performance in the previous tournament earned him the eighth seed in the New England Regional. Granoff took this respectable seed in stride, advancing to the quarterfinals and tying Steven Milo’s ’13 record-best performance. Bunis looked poised to exceed his previous performance but had to withdraw from the tournament after a promising first-round win against Bowdoin's Gil Roddy. The rest of the team failed to impress, leaving Granoff as the sole leader on the team. With Bunis out, the Judges lost a vital part of their team and their emerging potential. 

The Wallach Invitational seemed to be a final heave for the team as they tried  to stay afloat in their season. While Granoff earned the third seed, improving from his previous eighth seed, he was unable to carry the team this time. In a huge upset, Granoff dropped two straight sets to Ben Rosen of Bates.  Saal had a solid showing in Flight B, advancing the second round and pushing the last set to a tie-breaker against Bowdoin’s Kyle Wolfe. Brandeis did not have much more to brag about, as they were unable to make it out of the first round in any of the remaining single flights.

 The team can regroup and start a fresh slate as they enter the winter break before the season resumes in February. 

The answers will come at the Redlands on Feb. 19th as the Judges return to the court.  

—Jerry Miller