By JAKE GROGAN
STAFF WRITER
The Rams’ experience-laden roster looks to take to the courts with confidence this spring season, eager to exceed the expectations that come with having a projected sixth -place finish in the Atlantic 10 conference.
Fordham’s three-month offseason came to an end on Jan. 24 when the Rams fell to Fairfield University 6-1 in Connecticut. The Rams’ only wins came in the form of two doubles victories. Seniors Kuba Kowalski and Matty Najfeld won at the first doubles spot, while senior Alastair Barnes and junior J.J. Tauil took home a victory at second doubles. Juniors Michael Puntillo and Max Peara, who played at third doubles, ended an unfinished match in a 5-5 tie. While the six singles matches ended in defeat for the Rams, the overall match score was not indicative of how close some of the contests were. Najfeld, Barnes and Peara all went to a third set, with Najfeld retiring while up 3-1 in the third.
The results of the match are impressive when considering the factors that affected the players. For one, Jan. 24 marked the first time the men had been back on the court in about three months. The team was also without the regular starter junior Jan Krouham, who underwent knee surgery two weeks ago and will not see action until the end of February.
Despite Krouham’s injury and absence from the team, he remained optimistic when talking about the team’s expectations.
“Our expectations for the season are to finish in the top four in the conference and to gain a seed in the final tournament of the season,” said Krouham.
If the Rams want a chance at a spot in the NCAA tournament, they will first have to find a way to get past the likes of VCU in the Atlantic 10 tournament. They suffered defeat at the hands of Richmond last season after entering the tournament with the tenth seed, so a six-seed jump would in and of itself be a dramatic improvement. To compete against the likes of reigning A-10 champion VCU and projected two-seed George Washington would be a turnaround that is hard to fathom, though the seasoned veterans making up the team probably would not bat an eye at the thought.
“I mean, honestly, with the team we have right now, we could have the best results in [team] history,” said Najfeld. “However, we still have a lack [of] practice, but I’m pretty confident we [can have] a very good season.”
The Rams don’t start conference play until March 11 against Saint Louis, so the team has plenty of time to get its feet wet before attempting to earn a top seed in the A-10 tournament. Until then, Fordham will be back in action on Feb. 1 against NYIT, a team itlost to 3-4 back in September.
