Grinnell Senior Athletes Share Hopes and Regrets,Perez Lobs Himself To

The courts are closed, the season canceled; Grinnell senior athletes share hopes and regrets

On March 10, the Grinnell Athletic Department announced that it would cancel all spring programs as the College shut down the campus due to the impacts of COVID-19, a decision which players said left them feeling confused, angry and heartbroken.

The athletic department announced their verdict two days before the NCAA officially suspended competition nationally. Men’s and women’s tennis were in the middle of their season with an 8-2 record and a 12-0 record, respectively. Baseball, softball, track and field and golf were also in-season. “I really feel like the administrators of our department let us down. They gave me no impression they fought for us,” said Brenda Guan ’20 of the women’s tennis team.

The Grinnell Athletic Department held a meeting for all spring athletes on March 10, the same day the College announced its shift to “distance learning.” During this meeting, Assistant Athletic Director Ben Cooprider allowed students and coaches to voice their opinions and ask questions about the future of the rapidly changing semester.

“The news of our season being cancelled was absolutely heart- breaking for me, our assistant coach and the rest of the team. While we saw the importance of doing our part to ‘flatten the curve,’ our students have given so much to the program over their 4 years and spent many years prior to coming to Grinnell honing their skills in preparation for college tennis,” said Paige Madara, head coach of men’s and women’s tennis.

“There was a lot of anger in that room, but I knew there was no way the College would make an exception for athletics,” said Guan. “As a senior, I felt very out of place in a space with a lot of non-seniors who were probably at most just annoyed about the whole thing but still had more seasons to look forward to. I had a lot to say but I felt like if I had spoken up in that room it would’ve just fallen on deaf ears,” she said.

Reflecting on her years at Grinnell, Guan said she wishes she would have had more of a voice on campus, calling on underclassmen to, “do something about the student/athlete divide.”

“We are alienated from the rest of campus and the administration,” said Guan. “If we want the administration to fight for us, we have to be able to reach out to those outside of the department and convince them we’re all in this together, that our experiences as athletes [are] an integral part of our Grinnell experience.”

“Since the news broke, I have felt just about every emotion possible,” said Nick Alex ’20, a biology and anthropology double major.

Nick Alex ’20 will miss the “home” he found in the tennis program. Photo contributed by Ted Schultz.

Alex participated in both doubles and singles matches for the men’s tennis team, only amassing two losses in the 2018/19 season. “I care deeply about Grinnell both as an institution and [as] a community, and having spent four years and two summers here, I had made a home for myself here where I was comfortable. Finding out about the discontinuation of the spring semester on campus made me feel that I was losing everything I cared about in a short span of six days,” he said.

Another senior athlete, 2019 Midwest Conference champion Ben Cobin ’20, said, “Unlike some of my friends, the decision didn’t hit me when I read the email. I think that has given me patience and understanding of the situation.”

Cobin had been in a semester-long race to climb the Grinnell College record-board of most wins for men’s tennis, but with the season cut short his place will rest forever at 11th with 132 overall victories.

The men’s tennis as a team was poised to win yet another conference title, extending their 16-year win streak.

“I believe the decision to cancel was correct and I fully support it. I do wish I had more time to cherish and understand what Grinnell meant to me. I think leading my team to another conference championship would have been a great way to end my time as a student-athlete,” Cobin said.

Each senior athlete shared immense gratitude for the time they had within their programs. Cobin expressed his appreciation for how Grinnell Athletics challenged him to sculpt a “growth mindset.” Guan said that she appreciated “the friends and mentors” she met along the way. Alex said he was given a sense of “family” from his team.

The seniors said that they were most proud of the team culture they were leaving behind. Cobin — a member of the Grinnell Judicial Council and the athletic department’s Gender Equity Task Force — is proud of the diversity of the men’s tennis team.

Ben Cobin ’20 was poised to break records this season for Grinnell tennis. Photo contributed by Ted Schultz.

“A lot of teams seek to recruit and train their players to be what they think is the single best type of player,” he said. “At Grinnell we have an extreme range of playstyles. I believe that this diversity allows the team to grow much more and develop a smart and tactical game style to overcome our opponents. … I hope that this remains a key aspect of Grinnell tennis.”

Alex said that he admires the culture of “support” of the men’s tennis program and that he wants younger players to support each other not only on the court but “in every other aspect of their lives.”

“I hope I set a good enough example for succeeding senior classes on this team,” said Guan. “Seniors are not there for the attention; no one should be on any team for attention. They’re there to give — give their time, their resources, their connections and their advice. I hope my teammates can understand from my limited time as their senior that all I wanted to do was help them be successful and happy on this team.”

While busy publishing articles on a blog titled Puppers and Pandas (an account of her experience as a Chinese American) in her free time, Guan said that she leaves the Grinnell community with regret that she did not cherish her time as much as she had wished.

“I didn’t get to say a lot of goodbyes. But no one ever said life was fair,” she said.

Guan left a message for the younger members of the tennis team and Grinnell College underclass-people at large.

“A lifetime at Grinnell is not enough. Not a moment is to be wasted. Every day is a chance to live your best Grinnellian life. It’s a hard lesson, and I will never have the chance to heed it and do better. For everyone else who does have time, I hope they treasure every second of it, because it’s one second more than I will ever have,” Guan said.

Perez lobs himself to semifinals of ITA Regional

Here’s one way to catch the Grinnell admission director’s attention—be the number four seed at tennis in the country and win the National Tournament at age 16. Juan Carlos Perez ’11 made a slam in the Ecuadorian tennis world and came to Grinnell the following year. He has been on the tennis team ever since then and has been the captain for the last two years.

Juan Carlos Perez '11 qualified for the NCAA national singles tournament in both 2009 and 2010 and was the first Grinnell singles player to be named an All-American Athlete, signifying that he ranks in the top 20 men's tennis players in the country - Aaron Barker

Most recently, Perez reached the semifinals at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Regional Championships. Perez reached the semifinals in his second year as well.

“[At the tournament], the only thing you want to see is your name and being able to play the next morning,” Perez said. “In the papers, I was supposed to be the one to win it because I was the number one seed. But my personal goal was to reach the semifinals, so my main goal was accomplished.”

Perez lost 2-1 in the semifinals to Byron Balkin of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

As was made evident by the tournament, Perez is not perfect, but he has great numbers and the accomplishments to show for it.

He is a two-time national qualifier and finished as the fifth ranked player in the Central Region. He was named to the All- America squad as the 20th qualifier this summer. Perez is just the third player in Pioneer history to earn All-America recognition in the modern era, following Dan LaFountaine ’09 and Nate Fox ’09.

To Perez, however, these accomplishments do not matter as much as playing with this teammates and playing for Head Coach Andy Hamilton.

“I’m extremely glad I play for [Coach Hamilton] because I could have gone to other schools,” Perez said. “Also, the way the members support each other is unbelievable.”

Perez’s modesty motivates his teammates to push themselves to the next level. “Juan’s a good leader by example,” said Ishan Bhadkamkar ’13. “He makes sure that everyone can compete at a high level and have a good time. He definitely brings seriousness to the team as well.”

Hamilton agrees that Perez plays a significant role for the team.

“There’s no doubt that I am a better coach from experiencing Juan,” Hamilton said. “I have been challenged to learn more about the game so that I can keep pace with his level of play. I’ve been coaching for 14 years and he is the most talented tennis player on the campus in the 30 years that I have been associated with Grinnell.”

According to Hamilton, Perez’s mental toughness on the court is the greatest factor in his success.

“He’s a quiet competitor. He doesn’t let his opponent see frustration which is a great sign in tennis. I think that carries him to some success.”

Despite receiving such high praise from his coach and his teammates, Perez believes he still has a long way to go. “There’s always a room for improvement,” he said. “I’m not going to be satisfied with what I have achieved so far.” As the Pioneers wait for the spring season, Hamilton has high expectation for Perez.

“What I’m most excited about Juan and what I’m expecting from him is the chance to lead our team to highest ranking we’ve ever gotten to,” Hamilton said. “When I evaluate other teams in the region and our schedule, I think we have a chance to achieve at the highest level.”

As for Perez, he wants to have some fun playing tennis during his last year at Grinnell.

“Friendship is the most valuable thing I’m going to get from Grinnell, not winning the matches. At the end of the day, seeing the Grinnell name with your name on it is just incredible.”

Raife wins fourth title

The history books were dusted off and amended last week when Sam Raife ’10 captured his fourth Midwest Conference singles title, an accomplishment only six others in the history of the league can boast. At the same tournament, Raife took home his third doubles championship and his fourth team championship. Despite the wave of accolades though, Raife remains a quiet and humble teammate; when asked about his history-making match, he applauds the performance of his opponent and when pressed about his own achievements, he defers credit to his team.

“Everyone played well,” Raife said. “We went into the day confident, knowing that as long as we play well and play smart that we should win and everyone kept their wits about them. It feels great to win.”

As great as winning feels, the sensation is hardly a new one for Raife. Since he stepped onto the courts his first year, he has proven himself a veritable force to be reckoned with both in singles and doubles play. Raife boasted an intimidating 48-33 singles record and an equally impressive 39-24 in doubles entering the 2010 season. It wasn’t until this spring, however, that Raife fully came into his own as a tennis player.

“I think I’ve developed a lot of more of an all-court game, I’ve become more rounded as a player. I’m a lot more confident in my tennis game. I’ve developed a more concrete strategy that I know I can use to win. The confidence has helped me pull out wins, whereas as freshman or a sophomore I wasn’t able to,“ Raife said.

In addition to maturation on the court this season, Raife also took on a more serious role on the sidelines. As the only senior, Raife had to adapt immediately to a leadership position.

“It’s kind of a new role for me. We had two strong senior leaders last year, so this is a whole new experience for me,” Raife said. “I think with the support of my co-captains, we’ve worked to create good team unity especially because a lot of the team is pretty young beyond myself.”

As the 2010 season came to a head at the Midwest Conference Championships, Raife knew he would be setting a new precedent for Midwest Conference tennis with his series of victories, but not without some bittersweet reflection.

“After the match was over it was a sigh of relief knowing I completed it, but also sad knowing I was done with at least conference play in college.”

While Raife may be finished with conference play in college, we can be sure his talents won’t be left on the Grinnell courts.

“I’m considering trying to teach tennis, not full time, but as some sort of part time gig. I hope I can at least come back every year for alumni to meet with the guys and play on my own here and there.”

Raife’s more immediate future is a bit more relaxed though. His plans for next year: “I’m going to go into brewing. My plan is to get an apprenticeship in a small brewery hopefully in Belgium and eventually open my own microbrewery.” Men’s tennis looks to capture MWC championship

As we enter into that weary, arduous stretch just before final exams, we might expect the Grinnell men’s tennis team to tone down some of its intensity.

This is, after all, a team that won 78 of its 81 conference matches. This is a team that decisively defeated both Lawrence University and St. Norbert College despite the absence of its top two players. This is a team that organized Erotic Deception.

Surely this pattern of perfectionism can’t be sustained, not in the dregs of spring semester amidst looming tests and daydream weather. Surely this team will soften, lose some of its precision, and relinquish some of its focus. It has to—right?

Wrong. Dead wrong. Any intimation of late season faltering was put to rest last Saturday when the team swept both Monmouth College and Knox College to capture a 10th consecutive Midwest Conference South Division title. The pair of weekend victories also marked the twentieth win for the team this season.

“What I’m most happy about is the fact that we were able to spread out play last weekend and we played 11 players in the varsity lineup,” said Head Coach Andy Hamilton. “We’re trying to promote depth and we’re trying to create good experiences for all our varsity players because, ultimately, some of those players will need to step into regular playing roles next year.”

Having graduated a number of impact players in recent years, the Pioneers know all too well about the necessity for a full bench of able athletes. They can take some comfort in the knowledge that of those 11 varsity players who dominated the courts last weekend, seven were underclassmen. Of those seven, three were freshmen.

“I think we are deep,” said co-captain Juan Carlos Perez ’11. “We’ve been able to develop some of the freshmen this year who have taken spots in the lineup in singles and doubles. Our sophomores have also been doing great. Obviously after freshman year you learn a lot and they came out really strong this year.”

This Friday, the Pioneers will get an opportunity to test the extent of their depth as the team travels to Wisconsin to participate in the Midwest Conference Championships (MWC). The Pioneers have won six consecutive MWC Championships and look to continue the streak, despite their long list of graduated players. “It’s supposed to be much harder to win this year,” said co-captain Alec Moore ’11. “The pressure is on us because we lost some of our better players and we need to show we deserve to win it.”

Undeterred by the pressure, co-captain Sam Raife ’10 remains confident that the widespread talent of the team will fully compensate for any lost players.

“The conference tournament has always been the highlight of every season. It’s three days of intense play and I think we have a really good shot going into it this weekend. Guys all the way through lineup are playing well, freshmen have found their confidence and we’ve played a lot of matches against a lot of tough teams outside conference play which has also prepared us well,” Raife said.

For Raife, the team’s only senior, the upcoming weekend is especially meaningful. Along with his final Midwest Conference Championship comes the opportunity to win a fourth team championship, a fourth Midwest Conference singles title and a third doubles championship.

“I believe there have only been six or seven other players in the history of the league to [win four Singles titles]. And the league is about 80 years old,” Hamilton said. “In my time as a coach at Grinnell, there’s only been one other player who would have walked away with 11 championships and that was Nate Fox who graduated in 2009 and went on to be an All-American at national tournaments.”

Raife and the Pioneers begin matches for the 2010 Midwest Conference Championships on April 30 at 9 a.m. in Madison, Wisconsin.

Undeterred by the pressure, co-captain Sam Raife ’10 remains confident that the widespread talent of the team will fully compensate for any lost players.

Raife and the Pioneers begin matches for the 2010 Midwest Conference Championships on April 30 at 9 a.m. in Madison, Wisconsin.

Tennis streak ends versus St. Norbert

After five years of winning the Midwest Conference Championship, the Grinnell Women’s Tennis Team lost 4-5 in the first round of the Conference tournament to St. Norbert College on Oct. 16 in Rockford, Ill. The Pioneers finished third and St. Norbert went on to beat Beloit College to claim the tournament title. “There were tears shed and there was disappointment,” Head Coach Andy Hamilton said. “But we had a very fine season, we went 15-3 and all is not lost. We did turn around in the individual flight at singles and doubles competition and we played extremely well.” With the wounds of the St. Norbert loss only an hour old, the women had to play in the third round match against Lake Forest College. They defeated the Forresters 5-2. “For Lake Forest, we were all down from the previous loss but beaten Lake Forest during the season and we knew that if we went out with clearer heads that we could definitely take home third and win again.” Kelsey Picken ’10 said. Despite losing the team title, Grinnell had two singles champions and two doubles championships. Constanza Alarcon ’13 and Tatyana Sukharnikova ’12 won in the No. 3 and No. 4 position respectively on Oct. 18. Sukharnikova’s victory was her second singles championship. Last year she won in the No. 5 division. The doubles team of Alarcon and Catharine Fitch ’13 took first at No. 2 doubles and Kelsey Picken ’10 and Jill Akiyama ’10 won at No. 3. “I was going to get gold ‘cause last year we got silver and there is nothing more perfect than going and getting gold as a senior,” Picken said. “Constanza played really well and it was obviously a great win but Tatyana’s match was the most ridiculous thing I’ve seen. It was probably the best match f the whole weekend.” Hamilton was impressed with the maturity his team displayed after the loss and in the Lake Forest match. “If our women are able to carry themselves in other parts of their lives under difficult circumstances like they did in the Conference tournament, they’re going to do very well for themselves,” Hamilton said. The Pioneers will continue their 2009-10 campaign this spring when they play in tournaments over Spring Break. “Our two seniors will be focused on finishing off great careers,” Hamilton said. “And we have a nice opportunity to rack a very good record again. I’m sure that each one of our players can say, ‘Hey, I need to work on this, this and this,’ and that will be their focus [this spring].”

Tennis team finishes season with a win over Central

The Grinnell Women’s Tennis team remains untouchable after consistent sets of stellar double and singles performances. The past Wednesday, the Grinnell Pioneers fended off Central College at Darby to rally for a 5-4 victory. This dual match brought a close to their regular playing season. “I feel good and I am happy that we did it,” Jill Akiyama ’10 said. “It’s always a little nervous for all of us.” The Pioneers held off the Central Dutchwomen with 4-0 singles run to finish out the match. “It was an amazing match, we were down 4-1 at one point and then we came back to win 5-4,” Elizabeth Montgomery’11 said. “The two last sets went to tie breakers so it was really dramatic and every one ran over to the courts and congratulated the last girls off. It was a great team moment.” Last weekend on the road, they handed both north divisional leaders St. Norbert and Beloit s losses, 5-4 for St. Norbert and for 6-3 Beloit. A week prior, the Grinnell women finished out divisional play and made a clean swept of the competition. After a complete shutout of Monmouth, 9-0, the netters defeated Lake Forest College 7-2 and finished off Illinois College 8-1 in a swift victory. Their win over Lake Forest secured their seventh consecutive Midwest Conference South Division title. “It was a great weekend for us, especially playing without one of our better players,” Head Coach Andy Hamilton said. “The win [over Lake Forest] is a good testament to the fact we have some depth in our program.” The strength of this team has been their ability to adapt to any line-up throughout the season. “This season every player in their position has tried to be accountable for their positions,” Coach Hamilton said. “Each of the victories, it has come from different people in different positions, in tennis it is sometimes about match-ups, we have been able to use our positive match ups for some victories.” “We are all pulling the win at different points of the line up,” Akiyama added. Throughout the season, Hamilton has been proud of how the team competed. “I am incredibly pleased that this group of women have a been able to bring their level of play up and what’s most exciting is we are not relying on one individual, all the individuals are working hard on their own performance which collectively makes us a pretty good team” Hamilton said. Going into the Midwest Conference championships, the women netters rank first in the south and with a 14-2 as their season record. St. Norbert, the second ranked team from the North division, is their first opponent. Championship play begins Friday, Oct. 16 in Rockford ill. “I think we can do it,” Montgomery’11 said. “I think we are really confident, we have played a lot of these teams before and we have done well. We will have our work set out for us, but I think we can definitely pull it out successful with sass.” Tennis remains confident after back-to-back losses

Lizzy Montgomery '11 returns a volley during practice on Thursday, September 24. Robert Logan/The Scarlet and Black

The Women’s Tennis Team is used to certain precious metal around their neck come post-season. However, in their last two matches, the Grinnell Women’s Tennis Team did not strike it gold.

On Tuesday, their previously perfect record fell after a 1-8 loss to Wartburg College. Their only victory in the match came from No. 3 doubles partners Catherine Fitch ‘13 and Elizabeth Montgomery ‘11. Last Saturday, they were handed an even greater defeat by Coe College, a Division III nationally ranked team, by a score of 0-9. Coach Andy Hamilton says there was some struggle due to some shift in the line-up. “Constanza Alarcon [’13] was injured,” Hamilton said. “Elizabeth Montgomery stepped into double line-ups and Catherine Fitch moved in singles. I’m pleased with their results—the level of play was very strong.” It was a nerve-racking experience for the first year, particularly considering the tough foes. “My knees were buckling and hands shaking,” Fitch said. But despite her nervousness, Fitch won five sets before losing the match against Coe—not bad for a first year that has only competed in singles once. Hamilton was pleased with her performance and saw her grow just in the short time that she was playing. “She has the tools to compete in singles line-up,” Coach Hamilton said. Fitch looks forward to building her skills playing singles, especially against the competition that the Pioneers face. ”It’s nice to be on a team that is used to winning and are just competitive in a good way,” Fitch said But the high level of competition is just all part of the plan, according to Hamilton. “There is no clique or motto,” Hamilton said. “This team goes out and takes care of business. My goal for the team and the individual is to have fun and play at the highest level they can play.” Despite the consecutive loses, Grinnell’s Women’s Tennis Team remains resilient and confident. “I am really proud for my team against the strong competition” Senior Jill Akiyama said. “The season is going pretty well, they were two losses, but they were pretty decent teams”. Going into this weekend, the team is now 7-2 overall, but 1-0 in the Midwest Conference South division. This weekend will be instrumental for the Pioneers—the women take on Monmouth today at 4 p.m. and Lake Forest and Illinois College tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. respectively. These games will finish out divisional play. Coach Hamilton predicts success with Monmouth and Illinois College but Lake Forest might be more of a challenge. “Comparing scores suggest we are stronger going into the match,” Hamilton said. “Our focus needs to be playing our game. [Lake Forest] seems to me will be closely contested, [they are] talented and deep, [Illinois College just] lacks depth to place.” With one win already under the belt in conference play and some tough losses behind, the Pioneers are looking for some redemption this weekend. “In order to get to the four team [conference] tournament, we need at least two wins this weekend,” Hamilton said. “I’d be surprised if our players weren’t going into the weekend confident.”

Season sizzling for women’s tennis team

After winning seven out of eight matches, the Grinnell Women’s Tennis Team is just about halfway through the regular season riding strong. The hot start impressed several teams and coaches, Coach Andy Hamilton ’85 included. “If you would’ve asked me if we’d be 7-1 at this point before the season started,” Hamilton said, “I [would have] said ‘no way.’” While Hamilton may be pleasantly surprised by the success, he knows exactly what it stems from—experience. “We are blending a pretty experienced group of five returners with two first years,” Hamilton said. “So far, that’s been the reason we’ve had success.” Each week it seems a new player stepped up in order to ensure a victory for the team. For instance, there was Liza Spears’ ’11 critical win in a tiebreaker to seal the 5-4 overall team victory against Cornell College. Or Captain Jill Akiyama ’10, who moved to third doubles while fighting a rib cage injury that forced her to serve underhand and still won her match with partner Kelsey Picken ’10 against Knox College and the University of Wisconsin-Steven’s Point. Akiyama knows these individual successes and the success of the team has been great for the womens’ mental game. “Starting out with seven straight wins has given everyone so much confidence,” Akiyama said. “Especially the freshmen, who haven’t played at this level before, are seeing that they can compete.” Many of the Pioneer’s victories were close, yet Hamilton sees that as an advantage. “We will benefit having already been in some close matches,” Hamilton said. “Being in close matches early in the season allows us to be comfortable in the inevitably close matches of the conference championship.” The Pioneers, weakened by injuries and playing in their first weekday game of the season, lost the first match to Wartburg College by a score of 8-1 on Tuesday. Catherine Fitch ’13, who was disappointed by the loss, does not see a defeat in the team’s attitude. “We liked the idea of being undefeated,” Fitch said. “Now that we know what it’s like to lose, we will try even harder against Coe [College].” The squad will face some tough non-conference competition when they face the Division III nationally ranked Coe College, at 10 a.m. tomorrow Sept. 19 at home. Last year, the Kohawks defeated Grinnell 8-1. In Midwest Conference play, where Grinnell is a five-time defending champion, Lake Forest and Monmouth appear to be the biggest challengers. Grinnell will play Monmouth at 4 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25 and Lake Forest at 9:30 a.m. and Illinois College 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 26. All three matches are at home. Coach Hamilton did not downplay the importance of those two days. “All of our focus is kind of a build up to that weekend,” Hamilton said. Yet, Coach Andy knows to take the season step by step. “We’re really pleased about how things have started off for us,” said Hamilton. “A key to the next couple weeks is to get everyone healthy and, in the mean time, we are glad to play a challenging team from the Iowa Conference this weekend.”

Tennis team experiences early success

By Darwin Manning The Grinnell Women’s tennis team is now 5-0 for the season, with the victories on Saturday against Simpson College (7-2) and Graceland College (6-3) and on Sunday versus Cornell College (5-4). The continually closer scores, while all winners, reflect the fatigue that affected the players as the weekend wore on. After two tiring matches on Saturday, the team was hitting the wall against Cornell. “We had a difficult time with our singles matches, something we usually handle pretty well and I think that was mainly due to lack of footwork and energy,” Elizabeth Spears ’11 said. “So we really had to push ourselves through a very uncomfortable match to make points happen and, ultimately, win.” Although the Pioneers were exhausted by the end of the weekend, they continued to win with the help of a strong conditioning program, which has been a major area of focus for the team. Starting this season Head Coach Andy Hamilton has implemented a mandatory strength-conditioning regimen that is much more rigorous than in previous years. “It’s definitely going to be hard in the beginning of the season to adjust, but later on when we start to see results we will be thankful that Coach Hamilton decided to implement this new mandatory training,” Jill Akiyama ’12 said. Besides a stronger dedication to the physical part of the game, Hamilton wants players more attuned to the mental part of it as well. “This includes being smart about each loss and deciding if the main mistakes made were in the technical, physical or mental part of the game,” said Hamilton. However, confidence is running high, especially considering the success of last year’s team, which went 20-7 and undefeated in conference play. “If players play at their highest level we should find success as a team, because my assessment is that we have a very talented team,” said Hamilton. Last year was also the fifth year in a row that the Pioneers won the Midwest Conference championship. “Going to Conference is what I’m most excited and nervous about because I really want to win it,” Kelsey Pickens ’10 said. “I am going to have to work really hard to hold up that tradition.” A little luck might not hurt either in going to the postseason this year. “Last year did not work out ‘cause we played the University of Chicago, the fourth best team in the nation, in the second round [of nationals],” said Akiyama. “Depending on how our luck pans out this year, we’ll hopefully get a nice string of luck in the teams we match up against in the NCAA tournament.” But right now they will have to take it week by week. With five wins under their belt, the team now practices in anticipation and full of confidence going into their first home matches this weekend. Both matches will be on Saturday, Sep. 12, the first against Knox College at 10 a.m. and the second versus University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point at 4 p.m.

Tennis Attempts sixth conference championships

After finishing 16-9 and going 4-0 in divisional play, the men’s tennis team will venture to Madison, Wis. this weekend to try to capture their sixth consecutive conference championship.

“It will all depend on how well we play,” said number one ranked singles player Juan Carlos Perez ’11. “If we are focused and we bring our best, it should not be an issue to win conference.”

To prepare for the postseason, the team has faced quality competition all year including a match last Saturday against the ninth-ranked team in the region, Luther College. In the match, which took place in Rochester, Minn., Grinnell fell to Luther in a 5-4 decision. The Pioneers were able to capture points from the top three singles positions as well as number one doubles.

“We are a young team and we are very good at the bottom, we happened to lose to Luther but those guys are seemingly learn how to play better,” said Co-captain and number one doubles player Dan LaFountaine ’09. “It won’t hurt us at conference championship, in fact, I expect those guys to carry the team.”

Earlier in the year, the team beat the two other top teams in conference—St. Norbert College and Lawrence University to the tune of 9-0, 9-0. If the Pioneers are able to capture another championship, they will become only the second team in the Midwest Conference to do so. Ripon College ripped off eight consecutive championship wins from 1985-1992.

With the team at full health going into conference and the clear favorites due to their conference play, the Pioneers could make a return to the NCAA regionals, where the team lost 5-1 to Washington University last season.

“Last year we underperformed to some degree, but we ended up putting up an amazing end of the season run,” LaFountaine said.

This year, the team has played much of their non-conference schedule against regionally ranked teams, including nationally ranked No. 2 Washington University, whom they lost to 8-1 earlier in the season.

“I pitched a pretty difficult schedule at the team,” Coach Andy Hamilton said. “But what we’ve seen is the younger players have benefited by the difficult schedule and the veteran players have really stepped up.”

While the team is very young, the men have been getting better throughout the season and are prepared for the upcoming postseason.

“I think our team is very deep, we have three freshmen playing in our lineup right now,” Perez said. “With time they are going to develop their game like I did last year.”

Additional Reporting by Michael Schoelz Tennis team wins last home match

On Wednesday, beautiful weather graced the tennis courts as the men’s tennis team swept Central College 9-0 at the last home match for seniors Dan LaFountaine ’09, Nate Fox ’09, and Tommy Johnson ’09.

“It hasn’t quite sunk in yet,” said captain Fox, who has been playing for the last ten years. “It’s sort of nostalgic and it’s exciting at the same time but I know I’m going to miss this place.”

Fox and his fellow seniors will be missed by the rest of the team for their propensity to win as well as their leadership.

“Nate and Dan have been huge for this team,” said Sam Raife ’10. “Not only have they led on the court getting wins in pretty much every match, but they’re always the ones organizing off-court.”

Since their first year, the senior class has won a conference championship every year, a difficult feat that will be hard to replicate.

“We’re losing the two big guns in the lineup,” said Coach Andy Hamilton ’85. “Maybe this is the first time that it’s beginning to set in that they won’t be with us next year.”

Although the Pioneers have suffered some losses, including one to Coe College on April 11, the team (14-8) remains confident heading into the final stretch of the season.

“We really had a tough setback at Coe,” Hamilton said. “So we talked as a team about getting a little more focused and we had a very very good practice on Monday. I want to work through our bump in the road at Coe.” On Wednesday, that focus and hard work was on display against Central.

“We played very well with the 9-0 victory,” Hamilton said. “We need to pick up our energy level for the final part of the season and charge on.”

Early this season, Hamilton scheduled several ranked teams, such Washington University, in order to prepare his team for that level of competition. He sees that tough schedule paying off now.

“The fact of the matter is we’re now 14-8 and our eight losses have come to very good teams,” Hamilton said. “It’s hard as a Grinnell student to be focused and play well on a class day and quite frankly, this is as well as we’ve played in years on a class day.”

The team still has a few tough matches before conference. This weekend they play Knox and Monmouth for the divisional title and the weekend after that the team travels to Decorah, Iowa to face Luther and Wisconsin Eau-Claire. But as the season draws to a close, the excitement is palpable.

“We’ve had a tough schedule thus far,” Raife said, “especially the last month or so and so everyone is playing really well right now. We’re looking good going into conference play.”

Perez journeys from Quito, Ecuador to Grinnell, Iowa

Ever since Juan Carlos Perez ’11 picked up a tennis racket when he was 12, he hasn’t been able to put it down.

“Suddenly, after five months, I was practicing for three hours every day,” Perez said.

Within four years, at the age of 16, he won the national singles championship for the 18-and-under division in his home country of Ecuador. And then he did it again as an 18-year- old.

“I wasn’t ranked number one for very long ’cause I lost afterwards,” he said. “But I was ranked number one for maybe two months.”

When Perez joined the Grinnell men’s tennis team as a first- year last year, Coach Andy Hamilton ’85 started him at No. 2 singles. That year, Perez and the Pioneers won a fifth Midwest Conference Championship and made it to the second round of the NCAA tournament, a Pioneer first.

There was no drop in the off-season as the Pioneers have continued where they left off. Grinnell is currently ranked eighth in the region, the highest they have ever been ranked this far into the season. While their 13-7 record might not jump out, they’ve played well against highly ranked competition.

“I pitched a pretty difficult schedule at the team,” Hamilton said. “I believe we’ve played ten matches against nationally ranked teams and we’re 3-7 in those matches, but what we’ve seen is the younger players have benefited by the difficult schedule and the veteran players have really stepped up.”

Although he’s just a second-year, Perez is one of the veterans Hamilton was talking about. He now plays at No. 1 singles in the lineup, and is ranked seventh in the region. The top eight players at the end of the season go to the Nationals.

“He’s definitely our leader on the court,” said Dan LaFountaine ’09, No. 2 singles and No. 1 doubles. “He’s the guy that when we step out of the van and the other team looks over, that fear is put in their eyes as he comes walking on the court.” Lafountaine was abroad for the first semester of last year, so Perez didn’t meet him until the spring semester. But through tennis season, he found had a connection with Lafountaine.

“Not only on the tennis court but off the tennis court, he’s been a really influential person on my life,” Perez said. “Whenever I want to practice a little more, I know I can call him and he’ll be there.”

This year, LaFountaine and Nate Fox ’09 are team captains and Perez’s most important role is to win his matches. But Perez does much more than that for the team.

“Juan is one of my best friends and one of my favorite people in the whole world,” LaFountaine said. “His commitment to us as teammates is both personal as well as tennis players. This year there seems to be something a little bit better, a little bit different. We have direction, we have excitement. That’s something that Juan brings.”

However, LaFountaine hasn’t been Perez’s only mentor. Perez grew up in Quito, Ecuador, the same city as another Grinnellian, Felipe Bautista ’06. Bautista played tennis at Grinnell and graduated in 2006 but came back over the summer for medical school.

“He happened to live five minutes away from my house,” Perez said. “He started coaching at my academy, so we became really good friends, and I had been in the process of applying to college at that point. He helped me out with all that stuff.” Hamilton has coached all three players over the years and definitely sees the importance of LaFountaine and Bautista in Perez’s life.

“Inasmuch as Dan LaFountaine has been a great mentor to Juan since he’s been here,” Hamilton said. “Felipe has been an external mentor that pointed him in Grinnell’s direction.”

It comes at no surprise then that of all the great things that tennis has brought Perez, he values the friends he’s made.

“The best part of my tennis life is the people I’ve met: my coaches, and the people I’ve been surrounded by, tennis players,” Perez said.