Sports Roundup: Boys Tennis Earns First Win Of Season
David Creed •
This sports roundup includes updates on the boys tennis team, which walked away with their first victory of the season, the girls tennis team, the softball team, and the sailing team.
Krastev Leads Whaler Tennis To Opening Day Win
The Whaler boys tennis team had a successful season last year making it all the way to the state quarterfinal as the #7 seed. Not too far behind them was the Monomoy Sharks, who were the #9 seed in Div. 4 and lost one round earlier.
Nantucket welcomed Monomoy to the island on Monday to kick off their season and on the back of #2 singles player Nik Krastev earned a 3-2 victory.
“It was really good stuff all around and there were like 50 people there at the end of the match,” Whaler head coach David Cheever said. “I think Wednesday we will have a rain out but on Saturday get a chance to play a team we have never played (Plymouth South) so that will be great. This was a good start for us.”
Krastev lost the first set 6-7, but rallied to win the second set 6-1 and the third set 6-3. In the tiebreaker, Krastev had a double fault but it didn’t seem to faze him – which impressed Cheever.
“The kid Nik played was a battle,” Cheever said. “When they split sets they said ‘Alright we are going to play a 10 point tiebreaker’ and I’m like no Nik – this kid is tired. His legs were like wobbly. You can take this kid you aren’t as tired. You can just suck it up and do it and he did. It was a great, great match. Both of those kids were hitting it really hard. They both played great.”
Hawkin and Soren Edwardes were the first doubles pairing and gutted out a win in straight sets 7-6, 6-3.
“The Bash Bros had their moments,” Cheever said. “Hawkin doesn’t shut up on the court he is yaking but he did what he had to do.
Sam Iller and Fuller Holland were the second doubles pairing. Iller has been one of the Whalers best practice players according to Cheever and it translated to gameplay. After winning the first set 6-4, Iller and Holland lost the second set 7-8. It led to a third set to determine the winner and they made quick work of their opponent with a 6-1 victory. The victory also marked the first varsity win for Holland in his first varsity match.
“Sam and Fuller played great together,” Cheever said. “They didn’t talk enough but they pulled out the match which was good. I missed the volley that Sam hit to win the match, I must have been over at Niks, and Dave MacKay (assistant head coach) said it was the shot of the day. He hit a back hand down the line for a winner.”
Nantucket’s next match was scheduled for Wednesday, April 3 on the road against Barnstable at 3:30 p.m. but was postponed due to weather. Their next match will be at home when they host Plymouth South on Saturday, April 6 at 1 p.m.
Girls Tennis Loses Opening Match To Monomoy
The girls tennis team began their season on Monday against the Monomoy Sharks on the road, but lost 3-1. One matchup was ended early due to time restraints, but head coach Luke Thornewill said he believed his team was on track to come away with the victory, which would have made it a 3-2 Monomoy victory.
Joan Harris was the Whaler’s first single player. She lost her match 2-6, 1-6. In her match report after the game, she said it was an okay match and that there were a lot of deuces.
“My serves were pretty good today, and I had some nice drop shots,” Harris said. “I definitely need to work on my net game and building consistency with my forehand strokes.”
Lauren Cutone was Nantucket’s second single. She lost her match 0-6, 2-6. Cutone said in her match report to Thornewill after the game that while the score may not seem great on its face, she felt it was an okay match for it being the first one of the season.
“My opponent had a great first serve but weaker second that I tried to take advantage of,” Cutone said. “We had some good rallies, and my serve was pretty consistent throughout the match. Something to work on is just consistency in my ground strokes and returning lobs.”
Chloe Marrero was the third singles player and lost her match 2-6, 3-6. It was her first ever singles matchup and she said while it wasn’t her best, it was a good start for her.
“I feel okay about this match,” she said. “It was definitely not my best but considering the fact that it was my first singles game, I feel okay about it. We had a lot of deuces, and I am proud of some of the aces I got. I definitely need to work on putting pressure up at the net.”
Lily Chibnik and Hannah Gerardi made up the Whaler’s first doubles pairing. They won their match 7-6, 6-3. Gerardi said they did a good job of communicating, observing their opponents, and adapting their game plan accordingly.
“I need to work on my net game and volleys,” Gerardi said. “I would also like to make sure my returns are consistent. Overall, I enjoyed playing and think Lily and I did a good job communicating and working together.”
The second doubles pairing of Sara Dussault and Sutton LeBrecht was the match that was cut short. They lost the first set 6-7. Dussault said both her and LeBrecht feel good about the match and that they play well with one another.
“We also think that we played our hardest and for the first match we still have things to work on and to improve on,” Dussault said. “I feel like I was doing very well with making the girls I was against run for the ball and ball placement. Sutton’s strong suit was her volleys and her ball placement. Overall, I feel like it was a good match but there are still things to work on to get better.”
An exhibition doubles match featuring Emery Bouchard and Gabriel Fee also took place. Nantucket lost that match 1-6, 2-6.
“Being our first match of the season, I think we did pretty well with serves and pace of the game,” Fee said. “In my experience I think I have to be more aggressive in some aspects and just go for it. Overall, I think we had fun playing and communicating with each other. I’m excited to see more improvement throughout practices and matches.”
The Whalers next match is currently scheduled for Friday, April 5 at home against the Sturgis East Storm at 4 p.m.
Softball Play Suspended Due To Time Restraints
The Whaler softball team was in the midst of a back-and-forth matchup with the Nauset Warriors Monday afternoon before the game was ended in the 5thinning so Nauset could catch their ferry home. The Warriors were leading 12-7 when the game was paused and it will be resumed when Nantucket travels to Nauset on May 20th for a road game.
Nantucket held the Warriors to no runs in the first inning and then jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the bottom half of the inning thanks to five walks surrendered by Nauset and a hit batsman.
Nauset countered in the second inning with six runs to make it 6-4. Nantucket got one back in the bottom of the inning to make it 6-5 and then regained their lead after scoring two runs in the third inning to make it 7-6.
The Warriors tied the game in the fourth inning and then broke out for five runs in the fifth before the game was paused.
Nantucket’s next game is scheduled for Wednesday, April 3 on the road against Barnstable at 4 p.m.
Sailing Wins First Regatta
The Whaler sailing team began the season on a high note Tuesday afternoon after winning their first regatta of the season 3-0 on the road against the Barnstable Red Hawks.
Head coach Bruce Turner said after the race that he felt it was an “excellent start” to the season. The sailing team also posted on their Instagram page that the team also went 6-1 in exhibition play with JV only losing one race to Barnstable’s Varsity team.
The Whalers now set their sights on what should be a windy Thursday regatta against Old Rochester Regional High School on the island at a time to be determined.
SCHEDULE AHEAD:
Wednesday, April 3:
All games postponed due to weather.
Thursday, April 4:
The sailing team will be at home facing Old Rochester at a time to be determined.
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