This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
06/18/2018 12:00 AMThe Morgan boys’ tennis team recorded one of the best seasons that the program has seen in several years during the spring of 2018. The Huskies went 17-1 in the regular season and shared the Shoreline Conference title with Old Lyme, marking Morgan’s first conference championship since 1998. The Huskies later saw plenty of representation in the Class S State Championship, where senior captains Matt Newfield and Patrick Markovics reached the final of the doubles bracket to become the first athletes in Morgan boys’ tennis history to earn All-State First Team honors.
Head Coach Chris Zawadski knew that his squad was going to be strong after making steady improvements throughout the past four years. What drove home that fact was the Huskies’ ability to beat perennial Shoreline powerhouse Old Lyme early in the season.
“I’m extremely happy with the way the season went, and we knew that we had something when we played Old Lyme in the fourth match of the season and won,” said Zawadski, whose team won its first 12 matches of the year. “Old Lyme is always at the top of the conference. If they’re not No. 1, then they’re 2 or 3. We won a tough matchup.”
Coach Zawadski leaned on his three senior captains to motivate his team this spring. Zawadski said that Newfield, Markovics, and Drew Marzano each brought their own type of leadership to the Huskies, and he believes that makes a big difference.
“It’s great to have a balance of different personalities,” Zawadski said. “It helps when you have kids bring different stuff to the table than other guys.”
Newfield was Morgan’s No. 1 singles player during the regular season, turning in a record of 9-9. He then reached the final of the Shoreline Conference Tournament singles bracket to make the All-Shoreline Conference First Team, before teaming up with Markovics at states. Zawadski said the senior captain set a great example by constantly working to improve his game and felt his attitude was contagious among the Huskies.
“Matt leads by example. He put in a lot of time the last two years and that rubbed off on other kids,” said Zawadski. “Over the summer and fall, he played a lot, and he was instrumental in getting those others guys out there hitting.”
Markovics posted a record of 11-7 playing No. 2 singles during the regular season. He also served as an ambassador for the Huskies who was always trying to get new people to join the squad.
“Patrick was our recruiter captain. He was the one who got soccer kids to come play tennis,” Zawadski said. “He was out front getting kids, saying that we have a shot, and we’ll be good this year. Being able to have the kids buy in—that’s instrumental.”
Marzano was the Huskies’ vocal leader while playing No. 2 doubles with junior Sean Arribas Cockley. The duo served up a 10-2 record as Marzano motivated his teammates to bring their A-game to the court.
“Drew was more the loud one. He was the one who made sure kids were on task,” said Zawadski. “Tennis is his only sport, so he took it serious and, it being his senior year, he was honed in on the team aspect.”
Other mainstays for Morgan were senior Vincent Tino, who went 9-5 at No. 3 singles; and junior Garret Johnson, who notched a mark of 15-2 the No. 4 singles spot. They also teamed up at the State Championship and won a match. Junior JP Nye mostly played No. 5 singles and lost just one match, but he also shifted into the doubles lineup on occasion.
At the No. 1 doubles position, Morgan’s duo of juniors Paddy Murray and Chris Nuzzo finished the regular season with a record of 14-2 and then won two matches at states.
Zawadski feels that much of the Huskies’ success this year depended on his athletes’ willingness to dedicate themselves to unfamiliar sport. The coach said they learned fast on their way to reaching the top of the Shoreline Conference.
“We try to turn kids into tennis players pretty quickly,” he said. “Somehow, in the last couple of years, we’ve been able to elevate up with schools like Old Lyme, Old Saybrook, and Valley Regional.”
Another factor behind Morgan’s stellar season was its depth. The team saw plenty of younger substitute players contribute, and Coach Zawadski knows that will bode well for the Huskies when they try to follow up this year’s success with another great campaign.
“I had a bunch of kids who filled in. All my subs this year only totaled one loss. The depth was what carried us this year and that’s what will help us next year,” said Zawadski. “I’m proud of this group of guys. Most of them picked up a racquet for the first time freshman or sophomore year and, when I took over Morgan tennis eight years ago, they hadn’t made states in years. Now, we’ve made it seven of eight years, and next year we should make that eight of nine with a deep class of seniors.”
From the Sidelines
The Morgan boys’ tennis team’s varsity roster included senior captains Patrick Markovics, Drew Marzano, and Matt Newfield; senior Vincent Tino; juniors Sean Arribas Cockley, Calvin Jackson, Garret Johnson, Paddy Murray, Chris Nuzzo, JP Nye, and Deven Talarczyk; sophomores Logan Cummings, Andrew Daly, Miles Vogl, Charles Whelan; and freshman Zach Johnson.
The Huskies wins during the regular season came against Coginchaug (7-0, 7-0), East Hampton (6-1, 5-2), Haddam-Killingworth (7-0, 7-0), Old Lyme (4-3), Valley Regional (5-2, 5-2), Cromwell (5-2, 5-2), Woodstock Academy (7-0), Old Saybrook (5-2, 5-2), Westbrook (6-1, 5-2), and Stonington (4-3). Morgan’s lone regular season loss was to Old Lyme (6-1).
Head Coach Chris Zawadski completed his eighth season at the helm of the Huskies.