By Dylan Balsamo

The Fordham Rams Men’s Tennis squad had one last chance to prove their skill and worth before this coming week’s Atlantic 10 Tournament. Luckily, this week was not only a test of skill but stamina, as the Rams found themselves in Florida, not far from the site of the conference championship. The opponent: Eastern Florida.

Unlike its matchups of the previous few weeks, this match did not see Fordham come out of the gate particularly strong, as it dropped the doubles point.

While Sophomores Lutwin de Macar and Alex Makatsaria won third doubles over Sebastian Bunster and Fabricio Galvan, the duo of Juniors Fabian Hansch Mauritzson and Allen Thornes dropped their bout with Adriel Azucey and Frederik Oervad 6-3, and Sophomore Max Green and Junior Finn Kemper fell 6-3 to Nils Michel and Nicholas Mora.

In singles, the Rams took control of the afternoon, with early singles wins from Mauritzson over Oervad 6-3, 7-5 and de Macar over Galvan 6-3, 6-1. While Green fell to Michel 6-3, 3-6, 4-6 and kemper lost to Azucey 0-6, 4-6, Fordham secured a win for themselves in the two final singles slots. Makatsaria was able to squeeze out a victory against Mora 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 and Freshman Jofre Segarra proved to be the difference, defeating Bunster 4-6, 6-3, 6-3.

The final for the day was 4-3 in favor of the Rams, making the day a success, but not by a landslide.

Kemper said of the day, “It was a tough match today. All of us had to get used to the heat, but we showed great fighting spirit and came back to win the match after losing the doubles point.”

The end of the event proved the end of the regular season for Fordham. What comes next for the squad is the Atlantic 10 Tournament, also in Florida, which kicks off on Thursday. They will play as the seventh seed in the tournament and will face the tenth-seeded Saint Louis University in a noon matchup on Thursday.

Fordham’s biggest issue all season has been consistency, and as any sports fan will point out, consistency is essential for postseason success. The Rams have the talent. They hope the talent comes out to play.