WALLA WALLA, Wash. – The Solomon Brothers, Matt and Daniel, were the principal cogs last spring as a machine-like Whitman College men’s tennis team chewed and chomped its way to a 22-9 record and its third Northwest Conference title of the decade.
 |
| Etienne Moshevich |
Jeff Northam, Whitman’s veteran coach, knew from the get-go last spring that Daniel Solomon was playing his one and only season for the Missionaries. After playing his first two years at Colorado College, Solomon transferred to Whitman last January for the sole purpose of playing one season with his younger brother.
But it wasn’t until early this January, months after Daniel had returned to Colorado for his senior year, that the other Solomon shoe unexpectedly dropped. Matt, who capped his sophomore season last spring by collecting NWC Player-of-the-Year honors, opted to transfer to Boise State for the chance to play tennis at the NCAA Div. I level.
“Matt was obviously one of our best players on the court, but he also was a great leader and teammate,” Northam says. “Everyone on the team was sad, on many different levels, to see him go, but it’s also a great opportunity for Matt to play Division I tennis. It’s something he’s always wanted to do, and in this case, he gets to play for one of the best programs in the country, and for one of the best coaches (Greg Patton) in the history of college tennis.”
“This was something that happened at the last minute earlier this month,” Northam adds. “We didn’t know if the timing was going to work out for Matt, but we’re happy for him that it did. Matt and I had some long talks about his transfer, and we're sure this is going to strengthen his game.”
Even though the Whitman roster has gone from two to one to none, in terms of Solomons, there is no shortage of talent for Northam to coach in the weeks and months ahead.“With Matt gone, it will be interesting to see who steps up to fill the leadership void, and who really wants to play in the No. 1 singles spot,” Northam says. “We have 12 guys who are very competitive with one another on the courts. We can rotate guys around the line-up and see what happens.”
Don’t be surprised, Northam says, if the singles and doubles line-ups fluctuate throughout the season. “We have 12 to 14 guys who could play in our top six, and they will in fact play in the top six at different times during the course of the season.”
 |
|
Chris Bailey |
Whitman jumps into NWC play in little more than a week, when it hosts Puget Sound at 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 6, and Pacific Lutheran at 9 a.m. the next day. Both matches are slated for the Bratton Tennis Center.
 |
| Quin Miller |
“The conference is definitely stronger this year, so it’s going to be a challenging season,” Northam says. “But that’s what makes it fun, when it’s more competitive. We had one of our best-ever conference seasons last spring. We went undefeated for a second straight year, and we lost very few individual matches. We beat Pacific Lutheran 8-1 and 9-0, and I really don’t think that’s going to happen again.”
Pacific Lutheran returns its core group of players and has added a Division I transfer who Northam thinks could be the best player in the conference. “Linfield is also better, and Pacific made a good jump with its program.”Having lost the Solomon Brothers, who filled the top two singles spots, played together at No. 1 doubles and earned All-NWC First-Team honors, there’s no question that Whitman looks weaker on paper. But the Missionaries have a few points, in addition to its quality depth, working in their favor.
Etienne Moshevich, a sophomore, is back and healthy after missing his freshman spring season due to injury. “ET would have been one of top three players last year, so it’s great to have him the court again. He’s hitting the ball really well.”
Moshevich made a good showing last Saturday in the No. 1 singles match at Lewis-Clark State. He rallied for a three-set victory over Cedric Dufour, a senior from Evian, France.
Northam also expects sophomore Chris Bailey to cast a bigger shadow this spring, even though he hit his way through a fine rookie season that saw him bounce between the top three spots in singles. Bailey was the top vote-getter last spring on the All-NWC Second Team.
“Chris was just starting to hit his stride by the end of last season, when he was playing as well as anyone on our team,” Northam says. “One of the biggest jumps a player often makes is from his freshman to sophomore seasons. After a year of competition and physical conditioning at the college level, it's not uncommon for players take their game to another level as a sophomore.”
Quin Miller, a third sophomore, began asserting himself last fall at the regional ITA tournament, when he advanced as the semifinals in both singles and doubles.
 |
| Jake Cappel |
 |
| Dan Wilson |
Despite the loss of Matt Solomon, the junior class remains deep and formidable.
At 6-foot-5, Dan Wilson is one of the most imposing of the juniors. “Dan has probably made more improvements to his game over the past two years than anyone else in our program,” Northam says. “He’s really committed himself to finishing points at the net, when in the past he had a tendency to just try to overpower people from the baseline. His volleys and his doubles game have gotten a lot better. He had a very good season last spring playing in the top six. I don’t think he lost a conference match last year.”
 |
| Christoph Fuchs |
Jake Cappel, who was named to the All-NWC Second Team last spring, missed last fall’s ITA tournament while recovering from surgery, but is ready for a healthy spring season, Northam says.
“Jake is very talented, and he’s one of the guys who I think is going to have a very good season. He’s probably better right now than he was a year ago, when his physical problems held him back. He’s serving much better and feeling much better about his game.” |
| Nadeem Kassam |
Nadeem Kassam, who teamed with Matt Solomon two years ago to
earn ITA All-American honors in doubles, remains one of the top doubles players
on the squad, Northam says. “He’s also one of the guys with the talent to
easily play in our top six in singles.”
Northam also expects a good season from Christoph Fuchs, a
junior captain who ranks as the strongest of the Missionaries from a physical
standpoint. “Christoph has a big, big serve and very good volleys,” he says.
“He had a good fall tournament, and is providing some great leadership as one
of the captains.”
David Deming and Jasper Follows, both back on campus after spending the fall semester on foreign study, inject more proven talent into the junior class.
“Jasper floated in and out of the top six last year, and he had a very good record at No. 3 doubles,” Northam says. “He also got to play some while he studied in Paris last semester. When we played our split-squad matches last spring, David played up top in singles, and I think he was undefeated in conference matches. Both guys missed the training we did during the fall, but they both have the talent to challenge for our top six spots.”
Senior Justin Hayashi, Whitman’s other captain, is on the rebound from an injury that limited his playing time last fall. “Justin is healthy again and starting the season strong,” Northam says. “One of his strengths is his court speed. He’s been playing phenomenal doubles.”
 |
| Justin Hayashi |
Adriel Borshansky, who hails from Ridgewood, N.J., is one of two freshmen looking to make contributions this spring.
“Adriel has impressed me a lot,” Northam says. “In the fall tournament, he beat the No. 1 player from Pacific Lutheran, which was a great win for a freshman. He competes very hard, and he listens very well when he’s playing a match. In my mind, he’s one of the big questionmarks for our team. Just how good is he? I don’t think we really now yet, not until he’s had a chance to play more matches at this level.”
Conor Holton-Burke, a freshman from Boulder, Colo., also shows plenty of promise.
“Conor wasn’t able to play in the fall tournament because his brother was getting married that weekend, but he has a huge game, and was one of the better high school players coming out of Colorado last year,” Northam says. “He has a big serve and big forehand, and when he’s playing well, he’s the type of player who can really light up his opponents. He moves very well on the court and he loves to compete.”
“It will be fun to see how well the two freshmen can do this season.”
Rounding out the roster are senior Reid Bennett, junior Thomas Roston, sophomore Matt Goldfogel and freshman Stefan Dernback (Richland, Wash.). “All four are good players who would play more on most of the other teams in our conference,” Northam says. “Thomas has the strongest game at this point. He can battle with most of the guys on our team.”
To keep his big roster active and happy, Northam has scheduled several split-squad dates. “We divide the group into Team A and Team B and play two matches on the same day,” he says. “Our program is unique in that way. Most of our away conference matches are split-squad matches, and we’ll play most of our Spring Break matches with split squads. It’s a great way to get playing time for everyone. All of these guys work very hard and they deserve the chance to compete against other schools.
Anne Berry, in her first season as Northam’s assistant coach, will help manage the split-squad schedule.
“Anne is going to make us better in a lot of ways,” Northam says. “How many programs can say they have a professional sports psychologist and former world-class player as an assistant coach?”
Berry, who now lives in nearby Pendleton, Ore., played tennis, basketball and volleyball for two years at Whitman in the early 1980s before transferring to DePauw University.
“Anne was a great tennis player and one of Whitman’s best athletes when she was here,” Northam says. “As a sports psychologist, she has worked with world-class athletes in different sports. We’re thrilled to have her help.”
- 30 -
CONTACT: Dave
Holden
Sports Information Director
Whitman College, Walla Walla,
Wash.
509 527-5902; holden@whitman.edu
© Whitman College | 345 Boyer Ave. Walla Walla, WA 99362 | Contact us