M. Tennis cruises

After tough losses to nationally ranked Dartmouth and Harvard last weekend, the Penn men's tennis team bounced back by soundly defeating Division III Swarthmore yesterday. The Quakers' overall record now stands at 15-5. The Red and Blue won all three doubles matches and five of the six singles matches in straight sets. The only Penn player pushed to three sets was No. 6 Roy Sehgal, who won his match in a tiebreaker. Although Swarthmore possesses neither the depth nor the talent of most of the teams Penn has played, the Garnet was not to be taken lightly. Swarthmore has consistently had one of the best tennis programs in Division III, usually maintaining a position in the top 10. "It was no walkover," co-captain Neil Aaronson said. "Swarthmore was a pretty solid team and everyone had a pretty tough match." When a team is heavily favored, the tendency sometimes is to take the opponent lightly and play without a great deal of intensity. Play sometimes becomes careless when victory is all but assured. "We tend to mentally focus harder when we have something to prove," Aaronson said earlier this season. "When we are the favorites, we have to make sure we don't let our guard down." Throughout the season, the Quakers have worked hard to maintain the same level of intensity regardless of who they play. Time and time again they have maintained their concentration in 7-0 wins in which victory was decided after as few as five of the nine matches were played. The determined, focused play the Quakers showed yesterday against Swarthmore is just another example of their commitment. Even after they had won the contest, no Penn player let up. Each Quaker continued fighting for every point, maintaining his level of play instead of relaxing and giving up points once victory for the team was assured. Sehgal was an example. Playing the very last match of the day with Penn already up 6-0, he was forced to a third set. The Penn junior battled to a tiebreaker and walked away with the match, exemplifying the toughness that is becoming Penn's trademark. Coach Gene Miller attributed the toughness and success of this year's squad to the strong leadership of captains Aaronson and Marc Schecter, as well as extraordinary team chemistry and a group of promising newcomers. With only three contests left in the regular season, the Quakers are showing signs of a team on the rise.