Seniors and other strong returners look to lead Boys Tennis to success

The+Boys+Tennis+Team+warms+up+during+practice.+The+team+looks+to+compete+in+its+division+this+season+under+the+guidance+of+first+year+head+coach+Daniel+Phillips.

Itzel Vazquez

The Boys Tennis Team warms up during practice. The team looks to compete in its division this season under the guidance of first year head coach Daniel Phillips.

Head Coach: Daniel Phillips (first year)

2022 record: 8-13

Key Returners: Ethan Ganz (Sr.), Alex Rothenberg (Sr.), Noah Silver (Sr.), Brendon Kim (Sr.), Jack Benson (Sr.), Cody Lake (Sr.), Mason Herzog (So.), Leesung Dang (Jr.),

Key Losses: Connor Shirey, Kamran Ghavami

Key Newcomers: Rowan Gokhale (Sr.)

Strength of team:

“I think we’ve got some players that can hit the ball really nicely,” Coach Phillips commented. “They have a strong backhand, strong forehand, and decent serves… There’s a lot of natural talent. In doubles positions as well, we’ve got some players that can play doubles: strong serves, good net play, aggressive.”

Weakness of team:

“[Growth] will come with playing more matches [and] working on our resilience on court,” Phillips said.

He explained that the team needs to concentrate on “… staying in the rally, developing our strategy and decision making on the court: when to attack, when to defend, when to just rally.”

“I think that’s definitely something that we can keep working on so that we can use our strengths in the right way,” Phillips said.

Outlook on the season:

“Obviously we want to have a good season,” Phillips said. “We want to compete hard in our division [and] get closer to some of those teams that, typically, we might struggle against.”

Coach’s Comment:

“[We want] everyone pushing to achieve their best,” Phillips said. “If we can get every player involved in our team, feeling like they’ve improved this year, that would be great.”