Weakened Yardling Racquet Team Opens Tomorrow Against Andover

Weakened by the loss of its two star players Al Everts and Johnny Burton, the Freshman tennis team makes its 1941 debut against Andover tomorrow afternoon.

Everts, now playing third base on the Yardling nine, came out first in last fall's University tournament, and Burton, now out for crew, was the Freshman winner. With these men the team would be the best in the last few years, but even without them the opposition will have its hands full.

Ranking the squad would be difficult, but Coach Dick Dorson '37 has finally selected six players who have a slight advantage over the others. Ted Cohn, runner-up in last fall's Freshman tournament, is a very steady player. His closest rival, Dick Soriein, is a fast, aggressive player. Tall, six feet four inch Hugh Hyde has the height and reach for a good net man and is one of the best doubles men on the team. Former hockey star Marc Becbe has the most powerful serve of the group, Phil Scanlon wields a clever racquet all over the court, and chubby Andy Muldoon possesses a good solid ground stroke but he needs improvement at the net.

This year's schedule brings forth some tough opposition. Seven teams are listed including Andover, Milton, Dartmouth, Exeter, M. I. T., St. George's, and Yale. The Yale match on May 17 climaxes the season with the Crimson out to avenge last year's 5 to 4 setback. Cooley and McKenna who led the victorious Yale Freshmen in swamping the Yardling squash team will again be on hand to repeat their performance.

Thorne Kissel, Wally McDonald, and Howie Legum follow close behind the first six. Kissel, a Choate product, is both a good singles and doubles player, McDonald, fresh from the squash squad, plays a strong all-around game, and Legum, who lost a 12 to 10 third set to the winner of last fall's Freshman tournament, has still to get underway this spring.

Dorson plans to keep as many men as possible on this year's squad. From the starting field of 55 he has already chosen nine and will probably retain another nine after the final cut. At present he is concluding a tournament from which the semi-finalists, John Hulley, Thayer Drake, Phil Folsie, and Dick Beyer have been selected to fill out the regular squad.