Spring is in the air at Penn. With the warmer weather and impending fun that comes with the arrival of spring on campus, everyone is anticipating an eventful final few weeks of the semester.
And for Penn men’s tennis, spring means the arrival of the all-important outdoor season.
After a disappointing 7-14 2014 spring campaign, including a sixth place finish in the Ivy League (2-5), their Red and Blue hope to build off of promising fall tournament results and a fantastic start to the spring season.
In fact, the Quakers (12-3) find themselves in the midst of one of the best starts in recent memory, reaching the highest Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) ranking in school history — No. 39 — after shocking the then-No. 16 Penn State in February on the road.
One of the big reasons for that success is the Red and Blue’s young crop of talent.
“We have a couple freshmen that have really contributed a lot, and some of the older guys are having their best years ever,” coach David Geatz said. “I think the biggest factor though is that we have a bunch of really good players and they practice really hard.”
One of the young players contributing the most has been freshman Nicolas Podesta. After starting the season undefeated in six matches at the number one singles position and 3-1 at first doubles with his partner, senior Jeremy Court, Podesta has cemented himself at the top of the Red and Blue’s roster.
Another freshman, Josh Pompan, has anchored the heart of the Quakers’ lineup, fighting his way to a 5-2 singles record.
However, Penn has had to deal with their top players being sidelined by illness and injury. The Quakers’ top two singles players, Podesta and junior captain Vim De Alwis, missed every match on the team’s spring break trip out west because of a virus and a meniscus injury respectively, resulting in tough losses to UT Arlington and No. 45 New Mexico. Sophomore top-six singles player Marshall Sharp has also missed Penn’s last two matches with a hip flexor injury.
“If you take out any team’s top two players and another starter, they are going to struggle,” Geatz said. “And we did.”
After their first outdoor matches against Georgetown and Temple wrap up this weekend, the Quakers will be transitioning into the most important, and seemingly most difficult, stretch of their season: Ivy League play. Seven of the final eight matches for the Red and Blue this season will be against teams from the Ancient Eight, six of which are currently ranked higher than Penn in the ITA standings.
Harvard, led by senior All-American and NCAA Championship semifinalist Denis Nguyen, is the highest ranked Ivy program at No. 22.
Looking to defend their Ivy League Championship, Columbia sits right behind Harvard at No. 23. Princeton, Dartmouth, Cornell and Brown are also ranked inside the top 60, setting the stage for one of the most competitive Ancient Eight seasons to date.
“A few years ago, the winner of the Ivy League was number 51 in the country,” Geatz said. “Number 51 will not win the conference anymore.”
“It’s incredible ... the Ivy League has gotten ridiculously good at men’s tennis, but with a healthy lineup, we will make the NCAA tournament. I think we are really good. We can’t afford to lose our top guys.”
As the temperatures rise, so will the pressure on the Red and Blue. And as the season moves outdoors for its conclusion, Penn will need to stay healthy to maintain its early success.
If they do, the Quakers will be in position to battle for their sixth Ivy League title, its first since 2007, and an NCAA tournament birth.
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