Rocky Maldow-a: the new underdog in town

Everyone loves an underdog story. We love to see Rocky knock out Ivan Drago, the Hoosiers win the state title, Average Joe's topple Globo-Gym. Something about the David and Goliath story hits a soft spot in our hearts, and this week, the David for whom the crowd cheered was the freshman tennis player David Maldow. His Goliath was John James from Mary Washington, who was ranked No. 7 in the country until his match with Maldow.

"Everyone there was watching Dave's match, because it was two nationally ranked tennis players," spectator Kyle Keane `10 said. "You could tell James was getting frustrated every time he messed up a serve. He kept talking to himself, saying `Wake up! Wake up!'"

Ranked No. 13 in the country until Saturday's match, Maldow played through a tough first set against James. Boosted by the support of his coaches and teammates and the several fans that lined the chain link fences surrounding the court, Maldow fought through 12 grueling games, coming out on top, and winning the set 7-5.

"The first set was really tight," Maldow said. "It came down to a break. After the first set, he got a little discouraged and I just kept with how I was playing, keeping the ball in play and making him miss, and he eventually broke down in the second."

Maldow destroyed the seventh-ranked James in the second set in a mere seven games, winning 6-1. The win against James marked Maldow's sixth straight victory. However, the win was even more important for his team. Maldow's stellar performance led the Blue Jays to a rally in the singles competition as his teammates fought past ninth-ranked Mary Washington, winning four of the six matches.

Earlier in the match, Maldow and his doubles partner, freshman Dan Myers, tallied the only Blue Jay victory in the doubles competition with a 9-7 win over Mary Washington's Eddie Carver and Evan Goff. Maldow fought off two match points in his doubles match with Myers, clinching the victory that would eventually decide the final team score. That match was all the Blue Jays needed going into the singles competition, and Hopkins finished the day 5-4 against Mary Washington.

Dan Myers, not only Maldow's doubles partner, but also his close friend and pledge brother in the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, had only the best to say about his teammate. "He's definitely the stand-out guy on the team," Myers said. "He's very team-oriented. Never one to slack off during practice, he's always very intense. Being his doubles partner, I can tell you he's a great partner to have, and he's been very supportive throughout the season."

Maldow's performance this season has been exemplary for any player, let alone a freshman. In the fall season, he fought his way to the Regional Finals at Salisbury University, and in the spring, he's come up the victor against two other nationally-ranked opponents.

Sophomore teammate and SAE big brother Tripp Weber said of Maldow, "If you are training with or playing against Dave, you know that you will have to work hard to keep points going and that you will have to hit your best shots if you want any chance at beating him. He is never nervous and looks to capitalize on points in which he thinks his opponent may be getting tight. You can never have a comfortable lead against Dave because he is one of the best at mounting comebacks."

Despite his national ranking, despite his unchallengeable No. 1 spot on the team as a freshman, and despite each win against the powerhouses of the tennis circuit, Maldow remains humble. Although all eyes were on the freshman prodigy last Saturday, Maldow could only examine his performance in terms of how it benefited his team. "The team's doing well, which is obviously the most important thing," Maldow said. "This win against Mary Washington really boosted our confidence. In a few weeks, hopefully we'll be going to NCAAs and doing some damage there."

Maldow and his teammates will hit the courts on Wednesday, Apr. 4, as fellow Centennial Conference rivals Washington College make the trip up to Baltimore. The battle begins at 4 p.m. as the two undefeated teams struggle for conference dominance. When the match begins, keep an eye out for a slight tremble in the racquet of any player who stands opposite the net of the freshman star and Athlete of the Week, David Maldow.