Tennis Reloads with Freshmen Talent

Tennis+Reloads+with+Freshmen+Talent

Arjun Chhabra, Staff Writer

Boys’ tennis is preparing to match their near-perfect 2018 league season, though they will be attempting to do so without some critical pieces from last year’s squad.

A total of 8 players graduated last spring.  In addition, then head coach Alan Weissbaum stepped down at the conclusion of the season.

Captains Cal Hunter, Nick Bohm, Eden Yu, along with other returners such as sophomore Joshua Fleming, junior Sanjeev Sarin, senior Nick Krozek, and junior Benji Goldblatt, used the late-January tryouts to size up their team, and their new coach.

Jimmy Scott, previously the assistant varsity coach, is now calling the shots. 

“Although we lost a lot of players last year, the prospects look promising and have a lot of potential,” said Scott.

The veterans were especially pleased with the new crop of freshmen. “Some of the freshman coming in look like some solid doubles players. They can be really valuable for us during the long season,” said Hunter. 

“This season is very promising for us because of all of the incoming talent. I am very excited to see what Jimmy does to use these players to their full potential,” said Sarin.

While the skill may be there, practice time has been hard to come by due to wet weather, and the lack of lighting.  Without lights on Campolindo’s 6 courts, the team is forced to conclude practice sessions once the sun goes down.

Coach Scott devised a plan for “both the varsity and JV team to have enough time to play” in preparation for their season-opener on February 4.

While court time at Campolindo has been limited, there are other options for players looking to improve.  Sarin took advantage of a club program in Oakland to get playing time in during the winter. “Not only did my physical game improve, [but I also] built up my mental game,” Sarin said.