Elsah, ILL. -- The team going in knew it had its hands full against Rose Hulman, who like last season has a deep roster of talent.  Although the "Engineers" swept the Panthers in all 9 matches for doubles and singles, that did not stop Principia from showing their true grit, and demonstrating that a win over them wouldn't be a cake walk.

Everyone showed great heart match for match, many of them going to deuce points in numerous games. In fact, the Panther doubles team of Brody Swan and Greg Sovie, were serving for the match holding on to a service break for the entire 8-game pro set. But the Hulman racket men held their ground solidly to win back the service break, and with that momentum closed out the match 9 games to 7. This proved to be the signature match of the team, but each match-up showed great heart across the board.

In singles the top three Panthers, Nat Kenworthy, Greg Sovie, and Jules Kitchingman, displayed some of the gutsiest shot making in their matches; wowing both benches with their athleticism and grace.  Third doubles team Dan Wagstaff and Andrew Kratz admitted they were outgunned, yet realized opportunities they did have when they were in control of points. Newcomer to the team Esteban Rojas Acuna played his first exhibition match of doubles with Peter Griswold, surprising everyone with his athleticism and court sense, while the two demonstrated some fantastic points in their first time playing together in their 3-8 pro set. In all, these guys stayed positive and relaxed all afternoon, and ended their losses with an upbeat attitude, chock full of motivation and determination to begin practice next week with some specific goals.

Finally, it was also terrific to have a full house of both Panther and Engineer fans cheering on the matches, while many long hard fought rallies left folks hooting with excitement. Many were heard saying how much fun it was to watch such quality tennis.

Overall, what made today's tough dual most satisfying is that Principia was competitive against such a quality team. As is typical in tennis, the set scores in no way tell the story of the quality of the competitive spirit or nature of the wins and losses. Although the Panthers lost handily, they gained much respect from their opponents, the fans, their coaches, and most importantly within themselves.

The Panthers play at home again next weekend against Illinois College at 5:00 p.m.  See you there!