Men’s tennis sweeps first match 9–0

This past Saturday, the Carnegie Mellon men’s tennis team kicked off its spring season with a home match against West Virginia Wesleyan College, a Division II college.

The Tartans continued to train in their off-season, with increased conditioning and lifting sessions.

Their season officially started two weeks ago, and the team’s hard work paid off with a 9–0 victory.

The Tartans came out strong against the West Virginia Wesleyan Bobcats, and took the lead 3–0 after doubles. Senior Jeremy King and first-year Thomas Cooper, the No. 2 pair, had the first win with an 8–3 victory.

The next win came from the No. 1 duo of junior Duke Miller and first-year Will Duncan, with a score of 8–5. Finishing the doubles set at a score of 8–4 was the No. 3 pair, first-years Christian Heaney-Secord and Bryce Beisswanger.

“It was a great way to start off the season,” Cooper said. “Jeremy and I played really well together.”

In singles play, Miller dominated at No. 1 singles and was first off the court with a decisive 6–1, 6–1 victory. Following shortly after Miller was Duncan, the No. 4 singles player, with 6–2 and 6–3 wins. Duncan’s match sealed the Tartans’ victory.

Junior Jooho Yu, at No. 6 singles, added a 6–1, 6–1 win and put the Tartans at a 6–0 lead over the Bobcats. Junior Harsha Rao, No. 3 singles, and King, No. 5 singles, were next off the court. Rao won his match 6–4, 6–3, while King won 6–2, 6–3.

With the Tartans leading 8–0, the last match was Heaney-Secord at No. 2 singles. Heaney-Secord was out for the duration of the Fall 2011 season with a concussion. However, he prevailed in three sets with scores of 2–6, 6–3, and 6–3 and finished the Tartans’ sweep over the Bobcats.

“I’m really happy to be back on the court and a part of the team,” Heaney-Secord said, concerning his break from last season.

“I was really impressed with the quality of our doubles for such an early season match, especially given the fact that we started four freshmen in the doubles lineup,” said head coach Andrew Girard. “Doubles success is going to be a key for us to make the NCAAs this year, so it was great to see us get off to a strong start in that area.”

Editor’s note: Jeremy King is a staffwriter for the Tartan.