The tennis match is also a farewell for university programs

On a cloudy day, before a few dozen people at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, a team wearing light blue uniforms battles a dark blue team on six courts.

Here, the varsity tennis team has the biggest moment in its history. And where it goes to die.

For the first time, the St. Francis of Brooklyn men’s team played in the NCAA Tournament. But after the first-round game was over Friday and St. Francis fell 4-0 to Columbia, the program was no more. St. Francis will end all sports at the end of the school year due to budget reasons.

Chad Davis played at St. Francis and has been the men’s tennis coach for 19 years. She said it’s definitely a bitter pill to swallow, being an alumna of the university, being there for so long and seeing the program grow year after year and battle after battle.

Making the tournament looked unlikely after St. Francis started 1-10 this season, including a loss in its first conference game. It was definitely difficult in the beginning; we didn’t click,” Davis said.

Then in March came the news that college athletic programs were being shut down. The school cited increased operating expenses, leveled revenue streams and leveled enrollments.

It was very surprising, said one of the players, Luis Foix Sotos, from Jvea, Spain. When I saw the sports director, his voice was very sad. I said: Something is happening here. When he broke the news, some people cried. It was a very sad moment.

Davis said, “When I heard that, it was definitely a shock.” Still, the news, the coach said, seemed to strangely rally the team. The guys kind of came together and we got some nice wins together.

The team won seven of their last eight games, including all of their remaining conference games. But it had to win the Northeast Conference tournament to qualify for the NCAA tournament. In the final, it faced Fairleigh Dickinson, who had eliminated it the previous two years.

Foix Sotos was the player who won the tap match with a 4-2 victory. It was the best feeling ever, she said. It was one of the happiest moments of my life. For me it was epic; it was like a movie that ended in the best possible way.

In the NCAA Tournament against Columbia, St. Francis was the great underdog; With a 19-3 record, Columbia had achieved the highest ranking in its history, at No. 13 nationally. The match was played mostly in front of friends and family, a far cry from the Billie Jean King Center filled with fans who pay $24 for chicken tenders at the US Open.

St. Francis was made even more difficult to stay, in part because some players were unable to cancel travel plans they had made when a trip to the tournament seemed unlikely. For example, Foix Sotos played the fourth single instead of the usual sixth. And Davis also had to miss the match due to a health issue.

Columbia made quick work of the opening doubles matches, and the singles matches were no closer. When Columbia won its third singles match, the others were dropped and St. Francis’ final season was done.

St. Francis was one of the smallest schools in Division I athletics.

The men’s basketball team was one of only four original members of Division I to never reach the NCAA Tournament. However, the men’s water polo team made several trips to the Final Four, most recently in 2013, and the city skyline against the backdrop of soccer games at Brooklyn Bridge Park regularly prompted visiting players to demand selfies.

The men’s and women’s track teams are the last to go, but in a few weeks their final season will also be over.

St. Francis has said it will honor the athletic scholarships of players with remaining eligibility. Some of the older players plan to stay in New York, said Foix Sotos, whose own eligibility is up. They have a life here and they don’t want to move just for a year. But Freshmen and Sophomores all want to transfer; they are looking for schools.

Sports officials said they could get the money together. Does Davis have plans after two decades at the school? At the moment, no, I don’t.

At the end of the match on Friday, the team gathered in a circle behind one of the nets, hands tied, and shared a private moment.

We just said thank you, Foix Sotos said.

My last college match, he said of the unexpected visit to the tournament. This day was like a reward for me.