The Huntington High School boys’ tennis team hasn’t played a match in more than a year. Last spring’s season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The same thing happened at J. Taylor Finley Middle School. The Blue Devils will look to regroup next spring when they take the court for play in May.
Because the high school and middle school teams haven’t played in such a long time there are many questions surrounding them and every other tennis team in Suffolk. The answers to those questions will become clearer in the coming weeks and months.
Huntington tennis head coach Jamie Fishlow. (Mike Connell photo.)
The last time Huntington played against a Suffolk opponent was 18 months ago. That’s a long time in the sports world. But Jamie Fishlow expects his players to be ready for the 2021 campaign. They will participate in pre-season training and are already looking forward to a return to the Coach Cupp Complex at the high school.
Among the high school players who suited up in 2019 and are eligible to return next spring are Josh Bailin, Sean Hassett, Jonathan Apelsinov, Aaron Chin, Alex Frawley, Aiden Lefebvre, Matthew Levinson, Matthew Minicozzi, Nathan Ribando, Richard Rongo and William Weber.
The seventh and eighth graders who played on the Finley tennis team in 2019 are now Huntington High School freshmen and sophomores. That group includes Jake Amend, Roman Borovica, Raymond Cumella, Benjamin Edgar-McNerney, Lars Galvin, Jeffrey Garcia-Cabrera, Tyler Godin, Vince Grassi, Timothy Kusterbeck, Gavin Lefebvre, Dominic Roldan, Jake Schmitt, Eli Soric, Jackson Stollmack, Andrew Sullivan, Logan Toth and Chase Williams.
Fishlow said he isn’t sure who will decide to play next spring. Since there wasn’t a season in 2020, some of the players might have lost interest in playing for the Blue Devils while others who haven’t played for the school might decide to come out for the team.
When pre-season training starts, Fishlow expects to get a better handle on who intends to play next spring. The vast bulk of past Blue Devil players are expected to return to the program.
Fishlow believes Huntington will be competitive next spring and like his players, he can’t wait for the season to begin.