The Suffolk Rams’ men’s tennis team is off to a shaky start, but look like they are pulling themselves together.
The Rams defeated Wentworth in their home opener after being down 4-0 in the match, the Rams made the comeback.
“There was a lot of pressure on us to win this game… we thought the match was over, but we kept fighting and showed real character,” said junior Vassili Stroganov. “Every one of us fought to the end and did not think about the score. I played at the fifth singles spot and… at this point the score was 4-4 in total play so I had to win my match in order for us to beat Wentworth… I won the last game and everyone in the team screamed [for] joy and ran to me and gave me a big hug. That was an incredible feeling; a well deserved and hard fought victory. And to get a phone call from athletic director Jim Nelson congratulating the team and I on the victory just shows how important this win was.”
In the Rams first 13 matches this season, they lost all of them. The fact that they were able to overcome all the losses and pull out the final win against Wentworth is extraordinary. This is just the thing that could kick-start the entire team, and the Rams could continue to do what they do: win games.
“This match changed our season,” said Stoganov. “The atmosphere in the team is much better now than after the Emerson game and we feel we are getting back our winning mentality from the last couple of seasons. Both mentally and physically we are much stronger than last week. Also a new player, Calixto Romero, has been recruited to the team and he is now our first single. He is an outstanding player from Peru and he will be a great help for us in the future games.”
The Rams defeated Rhode Island College 8-1, improving their record to 2-1.
Before playing against Rhode Island College, Stroganov was not worried about their record so early into the season.
“I feel very confident in the team with an overall record of 5-13 in matches won versus lost,” said Stroganov. “We have only played two matches and the season has just started for us. We have many wins coming up, don’t worry.”
