Endicott ranked fourth in CCC Preseason Men’s Tennis Poll

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) released their annual men's tennis preseason rankings and Endicott was predicted to finish in fourth place in the standings behind last year's conference champion Nichols as well as Roger Williams and Eastern Nazarene, last season's playoff semifinalists.

The annual CCC Men's Tennis Preseason Poll is voted upon by the league's head coaches.  Defending CCC champions Nichols (81) received all nine first place votes and were trailed by Roger Williams (71), Eastern Nazarene (62), and Endicott (54).  Western New England (43), who lost to the Gulls in the quarterfinal round in 2012, rounded out the top five. 

Endicott enters the 2013 season under new leadership in first year head coach Jeremy Howard, a product of the NCAA Division I Richmond Spiders, who looks to lead the Gulls to their first ever appearance in the CCC Championship in program history.  The Blue and Green have made the semifinal round of the conference tournament in five of the past six seasons. 

Howard hopes that a new style and a new approach to tennis will create a competitive atmosphere on this year's squad to drive them towards a deep run in the CCC Tournament. 

"We're not a top-heavy team, but we have a lot of parity that will allow guys to step in and play at any position," said Howard.  "I'm looking to inspire that competitive spirit so that when playoff time arrives and we're up against some of the same teams that have been eliminating us, we're going to have a better shot at winning."

Endicott's leadership this spring will come from a trio of seniors, two of which are captains, that all possess different yet effective leadership qualities. 

Captain Olivier Joggi, who was named All-CCC Second Team for singles and All-CCC Second Team for doubles with partner Jake Cohen, has proven to be the vocal leader of the team.  Joggi occupied the top position in Endicott's singles lineup in 2012 going 8-7 overall with a 5-3 record in conference play.  With Cohen, the duo combined to go 9-8 at the #1 flight with a near perfect 6-1 mark against league opponents. 

Cohen, the team's second captain this spring, is a leader by example with his play on the court both in practice and in competitive CCC matches.  Cohen went 11-10 overall in singles play across several different positions but stood out at the #3 and #4 spots going a combined 10-7.  Cohen also went 7-1 in CCC matches in singles. 

Endicott's third senior, Benjamin Randlett has proven to be a calming presence on the team with his even-keeled attitude.  Randlett shared time at the #4 and #5 singles flights and totaled and overall record of 5-2.  He also teamed up with several different doubles partners last spring but with current sophomore Eric Gandrup, the duo dominated with a 7-2 overall and 5-1 conference record. 

These seniors will need to provide leadership for a sophomore heavy roster that includes Gandrup, Michael Lauretano, Timothy Forance, Justin Warshavsky, and Corbin Tulley.  Forance went 9-7 (4-1 CCC) in his freshman campaign and was most effective in the #6 singles position with a 7-3 overall standing.  Warshavsky also shined in conference matches going 3-1 while Lauretano, when teamed up with then senior Porter Williams, was effective at the #3 doubles flight at 3-2 overall. 

The Blue and Green will also rely on junior Evan Ross who showed versatility by playing a several different spots the lineup and compiling a 6-5 (3-2 CCC) record.  Coach Howard will also look at freshman Michael Dolph this spring, who has looked good and shown promise during the fall season. 

Looking ahead to the spring schedule, the Gulls make their annual trip down to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina for the Spring TennisFest before returning to New England for conference play. 

"We'll have a good idea of what we're made of after our spring break trip to Hilton Head.  We expect to face off against some stiff national competition."

The Gulls start their CCC schedule with two tough matches on the road against Eastern Nazarene (March 27^th) and Roger Williams (April 2^nd) before a stretch of four straight at home.  Endicott faces off against the defending CCC champions, Nichols, on Wednesday, April 24^th in Dudley, Massachusetts. 

"Nichols is top dog in our conference and there is this thought the rest of league is just going to battle for second place.  Our goal in the beginning of our season is to serve notice to the rest of the conference if we are going to go down, we're going to go down fighting and not just give up first place.  Our guys need to believe in themselves and be ready to compete this spring."