The boys tennis team, led by coach Mike Sabin as well as tri-captains Dan Foley ’15, Michael Pioso ’15, and Michael Rosen ’15, hopes to continue the team’s storied history. The team is currently 10-3 and has qualified for the state tournament for the 22nd consecutive year.
Each tennis match consists of five individual matches, three singles and two doubles, that are best of three sets. The winner clinches the match when one team wins three individual matches.
When the teams have two points each they play an exhilarating fifth set to determine the winner. Pioso is driven by the pressure of the fifth match saying, “My favorite part of tennis is playing in the clinching set and being able to win it for my teammates.”
No stranger to these matches, Coach Sabin has high hopes about the team’s chances in the playoffs and the rest of the season. “Tri-captain Michael Rosen has been solid for us, as he has been since his freshman year, and Michael Pioso and Dan Foley, our other two captains have been very good, as expected,” said Sabin.
The team holds themselves to high expectations, and they have reason to due to being a top five seed in the south section. “I hope to compete well against the top players in the state and be a reliable point for my team at number one or number two singles,” said Pioso.
The team has an abundance of young talent that they can rely on to lead them to success this year, as well as in years to come. Coach Sabin is optimistic about his young talent: “The freshmen who made the team, Will Rosen ’18 and Alex Novins ’18, have been key for us this year and will continue to be in the years to come.”
With all three captains graduating this year, the team will have some big shoes to fill going into next season. “Next year I have high expectations for Alex Kley ’17, he has a lot of potential and talent,” said Rosen. The same goes for Alex Chapman ’16 since, “he is already one of the best players in the state and I expect him to thrive as a leader of the team.”
Their first tournament game is approaching, so Sabin wants to make sure the team is firing on all cylinders. “We need to be peaking when the tournament starts, hopefully we will play our best when it is most important,” he said.
(Dillon Hourican ’18, Staff Writer)