Last Wednesday the USM men’s tennis team beat Salem State 9-0 in a Little East Conference match played in Gorham, bringing their LEC record to 2-0. This is the Huskies’ second consecutive 9-0 victory after sweeping UMass Boston on April 9.
“They stuck to their fundamentals and the mental part of the game,” said Assistant Coach Wayne St. Peters. He said the highlight of the game was when sophomore Chris Chaffee (Fryeburg, ME) beat Salem’s previously undefeated number five player, 6-1. “He’s a proven fighter on the court,” said St. Peters of Chaffee.
The Huskies are undefeated except for a game they played against Colby in March. The next couple of weeks are going to be important for the team because they will be playing Little East Conference matches against UMass Dartmouth, the winner of last year’s Little East Championship, and Western Connecticut, the team they may face in this year’s championship.
They’re a young team made up of three freshmen, three sophomores and five juniors. But both St. Peters and Chaffee agree that they’re strong with equal abilities on the court. Most of the players are involved with New England and State tournaments in their free time.
When asked about their prospects for this year’s championship, Chaffee said the Huskies look good so far but they still need to see what the other teams have.
St. Peters agreed that it was going to be tough to tell.
“I can never underestimate UMass because they’ve won it seven out of the last eight years and Western Connecticut is right there knocking on the door,” St. Peters said.