LEWISTON, Maine -- The Bates men's tennis team returns many of their top players from a year ago and the competition for spots in the starting lineup is what has head coach Paul Gastonguay '89 most excited for the season, which begins Tuesday at NCAA Division II opponent Rollins College. The season opener is set for 4pm.

"It's pretty impressive, we have four guys that are all battling for the top spots, and they can all beat each other," Gastonguay said on the Bates Bobcast. "So we'll see what happens but we have outstanding depth." 

Last year, returnees Nick Forester '23 (Falmouth, Maine) and Nikesh Desai '24 (Hopkinton, Mass.) captured second team All-NESCAC honors in doubles. Forester was also a second team All-NESCAC selection in singles. 

Forester won two of his four singles matches as Bates' No. 1 singles player last spring, with victories over Trinity's Granville Kaynor and Connecticut College's Julian Tien. Both of his singles losses were close: he fell 6-3, 7-5 to Tufts' Boris Sorkin, and 2-6, 6-4, 10-8 to Colby's Jan Wenger. Forester's first season at Bates was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic, but he was 2-1 at No. 1 singles for the Bobcats in 2020.

Desai and Forester teamed up to go 1-1 at both second and first doubles in 2021. At No. 2 doubles, they defeated Trinity 8-5 and fell 8-7 to Tufts. The pair moved up to No. 1 doubles and defeated Tien and Zak Danz of Connecticut College (8-5), then fell 8-5 to Colby's Wenger and Joey Barrett. Desai also went 1-3 while playing No. 5 singles last season.

In the fall of 2021, Forester won back-to-back matches to reach the Round of 16 at the ITA Regional Championships. He is one of the team captains this season along with juniors Cameron Kania (Middlefield, Conn.) and Teddy Koide (Morristown, N.J.). Both Kania and Koide will likely play near the top of the singles lineup once again this season for Bates.  

"We don't have any seniors but these junior captains are doing an amazing job," Gastonguay said. "Our sophomores and first-years are buying in, so it's been a strong team effort." 

Having only graduated two seniors from a year ago, the Bobcats have a good combination of experience (however limited by the pandemic) and youth on their side. Along with Desai and the three team captains, junior Leo Kupferman (Montclair, N.J.) and sophomore Alexander Gujarathi (Plymouth, Mass.) are both impact players for Bates as well. 

Through the last two springs, the Bates men have only played seven combined matches. So excitement is high to get a full season in with this group. 

"We always have the long term goal of the NESCAC tournament and excelling there," Gastonguay said. "But it's really more about the daily process of holding each other accountable, working hard, and finding a way to push each other every day.

"Those little incremental changes add up really quick."