The men’s tennis team opened its spring season with a strong showing against Navy last Saturday. While the Wildcats have typically struggled against this competitive team, this year’s match was not decided until the final set.

Juniors Sean Daly and Dimitri Chimerakis, sophomore Brian Maher and freshman Brett Tobin played singles for ‘Nova. While both Maher and Chimerakis fell in the first set of their respective matches, their intensity rose throughout the match.

Down 2-5 in his second set, Chimerakis was able to battle back, making the score a close 4-5. However, two untimely errors at the end of the set cost Chimerakis the match.

Similarly, Maher was down 2-4 before fighting back to a 5-4 score. Maher was able to hold off his competitor before ultimately falling 5-7 in the second set.

Daly played in the No. 3 singles position for Villanova. Despite a tremendous effort, Daly was unable to take the match, losing with a final score of 3-6, 3-6.

Tobin also contributed significantly to the Wildcats’ performance in his first spring season on the varsity team. Starting off slow, Tobin quickly lost his first set 1-6 but was able to redeem himself by taking the second and third sets to win the match.

Juniors Charlie Farmer and Scott Farendorf dominated the doubles court, taking an easy win at the No. 1 doubles slot. Also playing doubles for the ‘Cats were Sumanth Chittajallu and Alex Leeser. After taking the first set, the pair was up 6-5 in the second, serving for the match. However, the duo was unable to cinch the victory and also fell in the third set, giving Navy the victory.

Part of Villanova’s recent success can be attributed to having a new coach join the staff. After 13 years with the Wildcats, Head Coach Bob Batman left the position to pursue his career in Colorado.

Batman’s successor is recent Villanova graduate Brad Adams. Adams graduated from the Villanova School of Business in 2003 and brings a different coaching style to the team.

“He is doing an amazing job,” Chimerakis said. “He is very good at keeping us goal-oriented and focused.”

Adams and the rest of the Wildcats have a big season ahead of them with a much anticipated match against Georgetown on the horizon. In addition to the typical Georgetown-Villanova rivalry, two ‘Nova players have a vested interest in the match.

Both Chimerakis and Daly came to Philadelphia after playing years of competitive tennis in Florida. The match against Georgetown will be a strange reunion for these two ‘Cats because two of their previous teammates now call themselves Hoyas.

Next up the team will play at Takoma Park, Md. this Saturday.