ITHACA, N.Y. – The Ithaca College men's tennis team is set to get its spring head-to-head dual match schedule underway this Satruday when the Bombers travel to Rochester to take-on the Yellowjackets in a 2:00 p.m. clash. The contest will bring to an end a long offseason and preseason, which began following the conclusion of the fall campaign at ITA's at the end of September. The Bombers will be looking to build off a promising campaign last spring, which resulted in the program's first Liberty League Tournament win.

"I think it has been a very positive preseason for us thus far," head coach Bill Austin said. "It has been evident the hard work our guys have put in the training room during the offseason and that has allowed us to really hit the ground running in the lead-up to the spring season. Guys are working hard and I think we are playing some of the best tennis I've seen from our group in the past few week."

Ithaca will begin the dual match season following their fall season, which consisted of a series of tournaments at Hamilton, St. Lawrence, and Stevens. The Bombers were able to find success in their match against Wilkes University, with the Bombers winning seven of their eight matches. The senior group of Minos Stavrakas, Colten Lavery, Liam Spiegel and Jared Fields led the way with each picking up wins.

This senior group will be critical to Ithaca's success this spring, as the group will be relied on to fill several spots near the top of the lineup this season. With the graduation of primary players Sam McGrath and Michael Gardiner at second- and third-singles, respectively, opportunities will be there for players looking to make an impact. Stavrakas and Lavery figure to lead the charge for the Bombers this spring, as the pair have been lineup mainstays throughout their respective careers. Stavrakas is coming off a strong junior campaign, finishing with a 15-11 singles record and a picking up 12 victories in doubles. The season culminated with Stavrakas earning All-Liberty League First Team honors for the second consecutive season. Lavery was also an All-Liberty League honoree, forming a tandem with Stavrakas to earn 13 wins in doubles play which netted the pairing Second Team honors. Lavery was not too shabby also earned 10 singles wins.     

Other key pieces for the Bombers this season include fellow seniors Liam Spiegel, Sam Fried, Jared Fields, and Ethan Longenecker. Spiegel finished last spring with four wins in singles, and seven wins in doubles play. Fried also saw significant action a season ago with four wins, all of which coming in singles. Fields impact was felt during the fall season and he has emerged as a strong candidate to fill a lineup slot in the four-to-six range.
Other returning players to the fold are junior George Lomas and sophomore Artem Khaybullin. The pair combined to go 10-0 last season during predominately non-league and tournament play, with Lomas collecting six of victories and Khaybullin responsible for the other four triumphs.

"We have an experienced roster coming back this season despite graduating some key pieces from last year's team," Austin explained. "This group knows what it takes to compete at this level, they have been there before and the challenges will be nothing new for them. The goal they have set is to continue the progress built from last season and work to jump into that top tier in the Liberty League."

The Bombers added three first-year players who will also work to make an impact this season in Wyman Ward, Tyler Purdy, and Max Sobel. The trio have flashed some excellent talent during the preseason and will certainly be in the discussion for lineup positioning in both singles and doubles this spring.

"Our first-year players have done a great job of coming in and adapting to the college game," Austin continued. "The group has come in hungry to make an impact and that has been evident in the way they have approached the workouts. I'm looking forward to seeing the group in action in live matches this spring."

Notable non-league matches for the Bombers this spring includes a date with former conference rival Stevens on Sunday, March 29, as well as another trip to New Jersey to face TCNJ on Saturday, April 4. The Bombers will also make a return trip to the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida, for Spring Break during the week of March 8-13. Ithaca will play against four talented programs, headlined by a tilt against Carnegie Mellon on Sunday, March 8, and followed by Coast Guard (3/9), Dickinson (3/11), and Bentley (3/13).

The meat of the Liberty League schedule follows the trip to Florida. A marquee date for the Bombers to circle is Sunday, March 22, when perennial power Skidmore comes to South Hill for a 1:00 p.m. match. A crucial stretch for the Bombers will be a two-week stretch in April that includes tilts against Vassar (4/5), Union (4/17), and Bard (4/19). The final two of those matches will take place at home and IC figures to need to go at least 2-1 during that stretch to be a contender for postseason play.