Heading into their match against Brown on Tuesday night, the Jumbos, losers of 10 of their last 11, knew they would have their hands full with an Ivy League opponent which had yet to lose to a NESCAC team. The contest ensued accordingly, with the Jumbos falling 9−0 in Providence, R.I.
But the young men's squash team, which now sits at 6−11 overall, has learned the importance of putting tough matches behind them and continuing to improve.
"Brown is a good team," junior Andrew Meleney said. "We went into it knowing this would be one of the tougher teams we were going to play."
Both teams were ranked near the bottom of their respective leagues going into the match, but due to the depth of the Ivy League, the Bears still stand significantly higher in the national rankings than the Jumbos. Brown rings in at No. 16, while Tufts sits at No. 26.
To make matters worse, the Jumbos were without their number−four player, sophomore Michael Abboud, which forced the rest of the team to fill the void.
"It hurts you because everybody below him had to play up a position," said freshman Hugo Meggitt, who fell in his matchup, 11−1, 11−2, 11−2. "It was the worst match of my season."
Meleney found himself matched up against one of his grade school friends, but his familiarity with the opponent didn't help much, as he fell in three sets. Every member of the squad suffered a similar fate, as all nine players in the ladder lost in straight sets to their Ivy League opponents.
Still, the Jumbos are trying to draw some positives from the contest and look at the big picture.
"We tried our best from the beginning, but we were more going out there to gain some knowledge playing against someone who's so good," freshman Gordon Silverman said.
Silverman is one of five freshmen playing in the top nine, and that youth has played a part in their recent struggles. This past weekend, the Jumbos were knocked out of the NESCAC Championships by Amherst in the first round, and fell in both of their consolation matches against Colby and Hamilton. But the youth that has made it tough for the Jumbos to handle the top teams in the NESCAC and the country has also given the players a positive outlook for the future.
"We're inexperienced," Meggitt said. "With any sport that's not a great thing, but it means we expect to get better."
The Jumbos' season, much like Tuesday's matchup against the Bears, has gone mostly along the lines of what they anticipated.
"Right now it's what we expected going into the season," Meleney said. "We have a lot of freshmen, and they're going to be good even though right now they aren't that experienced."
With only two seniors — Eli Borek and captain Henry Miller — playing in the top nine, much of the team is gearing up for a first shot at Nationals, which will be held in nine days at Princeton University.
Tufts will be playing against squads ranked similarly to them, meaning the team should have a good chance to make a run in the tournament, according to Silverman.
After a night to forget at Brown, the Jumbos are already looking ahead, with lessons learned from Tuesday's match in their back pocket.
