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06/29/2016 12:00 AMThe Old Saybrook girls’ tennis team had a stellar year in 2016 by finishing at 18-5 and putting forth a solid postseason showing as the Rams won two matches before losing in the Class S State Tournament quarterfinals. Old Saybrook ended the year the regular season on an eight-match winning streak that saw the team net six victories in six days, propelling the Rams to second place in the Shoreline Conference behind Valley Regional.
“I knew we had a lot of work to do this season in doubles, but our singles had great depth, and both exceeded my expectations for doing as well as we did,” Head Coach Ruthanne Rothman said. “We ended the season strong, playing eight matches in nine days, and then went right into Shorelines, so it was tough. The girls had exams and senior projects at that time and had to really push and it was a lot on the varsity. They played hard even when they were tired, fought through, and had incredible unity.”
Old Saybrook took a 5-2 loss to Valley in the opening match of the season and then rattled off four-straight wins before dropping a 4-3 contest against rival Westbrook. The Rams would get revenge on the Knights on May 16 by netting their own 4-3 victory, which catapulted Coach Rothman’s squad on its late-season streak.
“That was the turning point of the season. Beating Westbrook was big because we hadn’t done it since 2013,” said Rothman. “To come back and win that match was huge for us.”
One of Old Saybrook’s big-time highlights came when junior Erin Stangel topped Westbrook’s Sara Farnoli 6-1, 7-6 (7-4) to win the Shoreline Conference No. 3 and 4 singles championship. Stangel was named to All-Shoreline Conference First Team for her performance. Juniors Isabella Luciani and Rosie Rothman both collected Second Team All-Conference honors. Rothman and sophomore Tanya Gianitsos each earned a chance to compete at the State Open Championship and Gianitsos won her first match before losing in the second round.
“They worked hard all year for seeding, knowing that every loss went against them. They outperformed what they thought they were capable of and I think they learned that early in the season,” Coach Rothman said. “Believing you can win is half the battle and they believed in themselves.”
All totaled for the season, No. 1 singles player Rothman went 12-8, No. 2 Gianitsos was 15-5, No. 3 Stangel finished at 19-1 and won the Rams’ Coaches Award, and No. 4 player Luciani had a record of 18-2.
In doubles play, the No. 1 duo of Jess Holmes and fellow senior Jhismery Jara-Velez finished 9-8, the No. 2 pairing of junior Lucy Marinelli and senior Tenzin Miglay went 8-8, and the No. 3 tandem of sophomore Emma Rogan and senior Jill Murphy ended the year at 11-4.
Old Saybrook is bidding farewell to four seniors in Holmes, Jara-Velez, Miglay, and Murphy. All four athletes made big contributions as varsity starters in doubles lineup and so the Rams will have to fill those voids next season.
“They were all new to varsity and Jill hadn’t played tennis before this year, while the other three were junior varsity players last season that only saw a little varsity time here and there,” said Rothman. “I thought they all stepped up and were pretty successful. They really embraced working together, getting down the doubles strategy, worked hard on their formations, and had success, which was a great surprise.”
The future for the Rams looks promising as they will return 24 athletes and tons of experience in 2017, including all four of their top singles players. The Rams will be led by captains Rothman, Luciani, and Stangel, each of whom who will be reprising the leadership role they held this season.
“We have a lot of players returning with 10 spots on varsity, so we have a lot of underclassmen who will compete for those doubles spots. They are very excited and motivated for the opportunity to take over those roles and they all have a lot of JV experience. We have three doubles teams to create and a large pool to draw from, so I’m comfortable with that,” Coach Rothman said. “We also have all four singles players back and you need to win four matches to win, so I’m happy with that. Having them all back is a beautiful thing.”
From the Sidelines
Old Saybrook’s regular season wins this season came against Coginchaug (4-3), Haddam-Killingworth (6-1), East Hampton (7-0), Morgan (6-1), North Branford (6-1), Haddam-Killingworth (5-2), Portland (5-2), Old Lyme (5-2), Westbrook (4-3), East Hampton (7-0), Cromwell (4-3), Portland (6-1), North Branford (6-1), Morgan (6-1), Old Lyme (5-2), and Coginchaug (4-3). The Rams then defeated New London 7-0 in the Class S State Tournament qualifying round, after which they beat Wolcott 6-1 in the first round.
The Rams’ regular season losses came against Valley Regional (5-2), Westbrook (4-3), Valley Regional (5-2), and Cromwell (4-3). Old Saybrook then took a 7-0 defeat to Stonington in the Class S quarterfinals.