In any season, for any sport, coaches and players alike who put in the time and effort into their craft would say they want to win. Wins and losses, obviously, are the first thing people on the outside look at, and athletes just want to be successful.
For Boys and Girls Tennis, both these seasons were quite different from one another. Boys Tennis started off the season extremely well, but faltered into the end of the season and lost their first tournament game to Medfield. Girls Tennis, on the other hand, started off miserably at 0-8, but they finished the season with 4 wins and improved drastically from the start of the year. Although Boys Tennis had the better season by far, the way it ended was a disappointment; for Girls Tennis, the way the season ended actually brought encouragement for next year.
In their tournament game against Medfield, the 13th seeded Walpole Boys Tennis took on the 4th seeded Warriors. Despite being underdogs, the Rebels were hopeful that they could pull off the upset against a great Medfield team, but nothing seemed to go right for the Rebels during the match. The temperature was at 95 degrees, and on the tennis courts the temperature felt over 100 degrees. Although both teams had to play in the brutal conditions, for first singles junior Drew Morrier’s already banged up knee, the heat and constant running was extremely uncomfortable. At some points, even spectators could see Morrier’s discomfort on his face. In addition, Morrier’s opponent seemed completely unphased by the heat and was extremely efficient, even on the blazing courts.
Second and third singles also lost their matches, along with first doubles. The performance of seniors Brandon Chin and Alex Tourone was definitely the brightest moment in the match. With their match being the only victory for Boys Tennis in their tournament game, the Rebels were eliminated from the tournament, with a 4-1 final score. A disappointing end to what had been a mostly great year for the Rebels, Boys Tennis will look to continue to play well next year. Although the loss was disappointing, junior Mike Griffin said, “The season as a whole was great and the seniors will be missed.”
For Girls Tennis, the start to the season was crazy—to say the least. Not having a pernament coach for the first two weeks, the players were unsure of what was going to happen with their whole year. Eventually, though, WHS hired Diane Heinold to be the coach and, despite the losing season, she helped a young and inexperienced girls team improve. Freshmen players Alyssa Rosen and Erin Pitman also ended the year playing first and third doubles respectively. Having Freshman play varsity to begin with is extremely impressive, but for Rossen to be a first singles player only in her first year reveals her talent and the potential of the Girls tennis team moving forward. As junior Emily Brynes said, “this year wasn’t great record-wise, but we improved a lot.”
Despite two completely seasons, next year may bring completely different results for both Boys and Girls Tennis. The future of both these programs, however uncertain, is, as of right now, bright. Over the past couple of years, Girls and Boys Tennis—the same sports that, in the past, only the few and far between would play—have grown, and every year more and more student-athletes sign up to play. Even as the competition rises, both Tennis programs are hoping and expecting more improvement and growth next season.
