After one of their most impressive seasons in recent memory, the 2008 men’s tennis team started right where last year’s Huskies left off. In their home opener, they took down Little East Conference rival UMass Dartmouth 6-3.
The close competition was led by sophomore Josh Warren (Hermon) and junior Derek Stevenson (Raymond), two of only three returning players on this year’s squad, who is looking to extend their LEC supremacy by vying for their fourth conference title in a row.
Warren, playing in the number one singles slot, took over the court with a 6-2, 6-3 win over the Corsair’s senior Dave Gogoi, and Stevenson floated through at number two, taking a 6-1, 6-1 win over junior Chris Forster.
Steve Lent (Sharon, NH) and Adam Mitchell (Windham, ME) each won their singles matches against UMass as well, Mitchell taking home his first collegiate victory, filling the number 5 position for USM.
Regardless of the strong turnout on the singles circuit, Warren said that the most important matches for the Huskies to win are the doubles.
“We’re pretty strong in the top of our lineup,” he said, but added that “second and third doubles are where we really need to get points. It’s crucial to get those wins.”
Warren and Stevenson made nice work of the Corsair’s number one doubles team, 8-4, and number two pair Lent and Mitchell took their own win, also 8-4.
Junior Matt McGowan (Waterville) and freshman Jake Cowie (Scarborough) fell at number three, 3-8.
To say the Huskies have dominated the Little East Conference the last four seasons would be an understatement.
In 2004 they had one loss in conference play; 2005 they went undefeated; 2006 they had one loss and in 2007, undefeated again.
The only real deterrent for this team has been their play outside of the conference, where they have to play the likes of Colby, Bates, and Bowdoin, who are sometimes nationally ranked.
Their season opener, versus Bates-ranked number seven in the Northeast-was a lost cause, and the Huskies fell 0-9. Since beating UMass Dartmouth, they have sustained a non-conference, 1-8 loss to Endicott, and their first conference loss, albeit a tight one, to Salem State, 4-5.
The only returning players from last year, Warren, Stevenson, and McGowan will need to provide veteran leadership throughout the spring in order for the Huskies to repeat their domination of the conference.
“It seemed like we were weak at the beginning (of the season),” said Warren, “but we picked up a couple of guys that have helped add some much needed depth.”
Warren himself, in his second season for the Huskies, has yet to taste a loss in conference play.
He took the number two singles championship last year, as well as the number one doubles title, paired with the now-graduated Craig Spann, and was five times named LEC rookie of the week.
The Huskies next conference match comes Tuesday at home versus Rhode Island College. See them in the Gorham field house at 3:30 p.m.