In these early months of spring, the Fenwick Boys Tennis Team opened their season earlier than ever, getting into the swing of things well prepared. With the team consisting of mostly seniors, followed by a strong team of underclassmen, the boys have worked hard to play their best on the court and create a cohesive team together.

So far, the Friars have started their season with an 8-2 loss to Timothy Christian, but fought for every ball. Wins came from junior, David Scubkegel at #2 singles as well as sophomores, Scott Holliday and Cooper Jones at #4 doubles. David Schubkegel comments, “This season has been pretty different from last season because we had a core group of 8 seniors who comprised most of the varsity team last year who left for college, so that was a big loss. But we’ve had many players step up and fill the roles.” He also shares that in many of their matches they are the underdogs, which pushes them to bring on their best game against better teams, but also encourages them to have fun and eliminate some pressures and nerves they may have during the match.

Senior Tommy Shishman shares that many of the newer players are having great learning experiences while filling the shoes of the graduating seniors. He also shares his experience during his last year of his high school career. “For me, playing first doubles with Matthew Bero has been a great experience. We take practice and the matches seriously while having fun on and off the court. I hope that some of the younger guys can learn something from the underclassmen this year and put it forward next year.” All of the boys come to practice every day to work hard and push each other to play their best tennis, carrying on their strong work ethic of the Friars before them.

 As the boys close their final season together, Shishman and the other seniors wish to finish strong and leave a legacy behind for the underclassmen. Shishman shares that “Although it won’t be easy, I strongly believe that this Fenwick Boys Tennis Team can find future success in the late part of the season. This could finally be the year we see state qualifiers or conference champions.”