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05/25/2017 12:00 AMJake Zito started playing tennis as a sophomore because he wanted to join his brother on the Yellowjackets’ boys’ squad. Although Jake didn’t play that much that year, he’s been a quality doubles player for East Haven throughout past two seasons.
“I focused on playing tennis,” says Jake. “I wanted to be good and get better, so I just continued to practice hard with the team.”
Now a senior, Jake has been playing No. 1 doubles alongside Rob Scalese this spring, and the tandem recorded enough victories to qualify for the State Championship. Jake says that he and Scalese both move fluidly around the court and have formed excellent chemistry.
“I wanted to play doubles with Rob, and we kind of played very well together. We know each other’s strategy, know how we play, and where the other would hit it. We just know each other well,” says Jake. “Most of the time, we alternate between one person in the front and the back. We switch back and forth. I personally like being in the front more because I feel like I’m in more control.”
Yellowjackets’ Head Coach Rob Manghnani describes Jake as a player who delivers a solid performance match in and match out.
“Jake has been extremely consistent for our team over the last couple of years. He is well liked by all of his teammates,” says Manghnani. “He has a great mentality for tennis due to his even keel and steady nature, which allows him to compete in matches regardless of the stakes. He is a guy we rely on to always put out his best effort, which usually results in a point for our team.”
Even though he isn’t a captain, Jake takes it upon himself to get his teammates ready their for their matches, and he’s earned their respect as a result.
“A lot of times before matches, I talk to hype up my teammates a little bit,” he says. “During their matches, I’ll support them and cheer them on. I also help them in practice with serves or anything like that if needed.”
Consistency is a key for Jake, who’s known for having pinpoint placement on his shots. Jake always looks for the alleys where he can place the ball to score a point and has a knack for putting it exactly where he wants.
“A lot of people say I’m consistent in a way that I can keep the ball away from the guy at the net and force it to go to the person in back. I’m a consistent guy who keeps the ball away from people,” says Jake. “I feel like my lob shots are going really well. I’m good at placing them left or right and over the guy at the front of the net.”
Jake has also played a pair of singles matches this season. The first time was on Senior Night, and the second time came in the Yellowjackets’ next match because their opponent didn’t feature any doubles teams.
“It was Senior Night and they asked me where I wanted to play. I said singles because I had never played it before and I wanted to see how it worked out,” says Jake. “It was really tiring compared to doubles. I lost a lot of energy after the first set. In doubles, you have to place the ball more, where, in singles, you’re hitting it and running back and forth. It was really tiring playing singles.”
Jake says that he won’t be playing tennis competitively anymore after this spring, although he still plans to play on a recreational level.
“I’ll still play around locally and stuff like that. It’s really important to me because my uncle still plays and he’s about 60,” says Jake. “I can call a friend to play and we can have a good time. For baseball, you need a full team, where in tennis, you only need one other person to go out there, have fun, and stay in shape.”