WALLA WALLA, Wash. -- Winning five of six matches in singles, the Whitman College men's tennis team captured its first Northwest Conference title in four years with a 5-2 victory over Pacific Lutheran Saturday afternoon in the finals of the conference tournament at the Yakima (Wash.) Tennis Club.
In pushing its late-season winning streak to six, Whitman improved to 15-6 on the season and 12-1 against NWC opponents. Ranked No. 15 nationally in NCAA Div. III and No. 5 in the West Region, Whitman is all but assured of a berth in the NCAA regional playoffs.
Sam Spiegel, the only senior on the Whitman roster, was one of the five Missionaries to win in singles. The other winners, all freshmen, were Robbie Munday, Phalkum Mam and twin brothers David and Dane Miller. A fifth Whitman freshman, Steven Ly, lost a tough three-set decision at No. 1 singles.
Pacific Lutheran took the early 1-0 lead in the team scoring by staging rallies to win two of the three matches in doubles. "Losing the doubles point the way we did was just a little demoralizing," Whitman coach Jeff Northam said. "But it was great to see the guys bounce back the way they did in singles. Sam and Dane won their matches very quickly, which helped give the rest of the team a spark."
Spiegel won 6-1, 6-0 at No. 5 singles, while Dane Miller breezed to a 6-0, 6-0 victory at No. 6. "Our matches were over fairly quickly, so we got to watch the others finish," Spiegel said. "It was exciting to see our guys battling and winning. We played well in singles."
Munday at No. 2 and David Miller at No. 4 were the next Missionaries to polish off victories, extending Whitman's lead to 4-1.
Mam then clinched the team victory by closing out Pacific Lutheran senior Luke Roloff 7-6, 6-3 at No. 3 singles. "Phalkun sealed the deal for us, but that was a hard-fought match," Northam said. "Roloff has been a conference champion and team lader for PLU, so that was a great win for Phalkun."
Mam is now 16-3 on the season in singles, which includes a perfect 11-0 mark against NWC opponents. Munday is also undefeated in 11 NWC singles matches.
"This wasn't an easy win at all today," Northam said. "PLU played very well. They have a very good team."
Saturday's victory avenged Whitman's only loss this season to a conference opponent. The Missionaries fell 4-3 in early March to Pacific Lutheran in a match that was the first competition of the spring for Spiegel and Dane Miller. Both players had missed the team's first six matches.
Whitman responded to the PLU loss by winning 11 of its last 14 matches. "Even though we have five freshmen playing key roles, I knew this team had a chance to be very good," Northam said. "But I really can't say they exceeded my expectations. Our team goals at the beginning of the season were to win 15 matches, to beat Linfield and Pacific Lutheran, and to put ourselves in position for the NCAA post-season. They've done all of those things. They have definitely risen to the occasion. They have gotten better every single weekend of the season."
In voting by NWC coaches, three Missionaries -- Ly, Munday and Mam -- earned All-NWC First-Team Honors. Dane Miller received All-NWC Second Team recognition, and Northam was named Coach of the Year for men's tennis. Northam received the same award when his Missionaries won the 2000 NWC title.
Ly and Mam gave Whitman its only victory in doubles, winning 8-4 at No. 2. David Miller and Munday got off to a good start at No. 1 doubles, building a 6-4 lead, but PLU's Matt Larimore and Roloff took four straight games to win 8-6.
In No. 3 doubles, Dane Miller and junior Brad Changstrom failed to capitalize on two match points in the tie-breaker before losing 9-8 (8-6).
In winning its 15th match Saturday, Whitman pulled even in the victory column with the 1987-88 Missionary team that finished with a 15-7 record in dual matches. Northam was a senior on that team.
The NCAA regional playoffs are slated for May 1-2. The West Region playoffs will include five teams, with two of those teams advancing to the eight-team national championship tournament.
"We're not sure how soon we might hear from the NCAA," Northam said.
Singles
No. 1 -- Matt Larimore (PLU) def. Steven Ly: 6-0, 3-6, 6-4
No. 2 -- Robbie Munday (Whitman) def. Ben Schaefer: 6-4, 6-1
No. 3 -- Phalkun Mam (Whitman) def. Luke Roloff: 7-6, 6-3
No. 4 -- David Miller (Whitman) def. Erik Husa: 6-1, 7-6
No. 5 -- Sam Spiegel (Whitman) def. Jeff Loranger: 6-1, 6-0
No. 6 -- Dane Miller (Whitman) def. Boyd Massie: 6-0, 6-0
Doubles
No. 1 -- Larimore/Roloff (PLU) def. David Miller/Munday: 8-6
No. 2 -- Mam/Ly (Whitman) def. Schaefer/Uylango: 8-4
No. 3 -- Husa/Loranger (PLU) def. Dane Miller/Brad Changstrom: 9-8 (8-6)