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07/06/2022 12:00 AMWith his family involved in the sport, it didn’t take much for Will Fumex to become interested in tennis. Will wanted to excel in the sport and, over the past four years, he’s had that opportunity as member of Hand boys’ tennis team. Will formed one half of the Tigers’ No. 1 doubles duo as a senior and helped guide the Tigers to their fourth-straight SCC title this year.
Will’s parents, Juliette and Laurent, are tennis players, as is his older brother Cosme, older sister Laurane, and younger brother Paul. Will went to the court often as a youngster, and the sport immediately clicked with him. He remembers what it felt like losing to his dad when they first started playing. Once he started winning, Will realized that there was much more to tennis than just wins and losses.
“When I was little, playing with my father was always an emotional strain, because he always won,” says Will. “When I turned 14, I started beating my father, but I always kept in mind that there was always something more to learn when playing him.”
Will competed in numerous local tournaments while coming up through the ranks, winning three of those tournaments. When Will didn’t win, it brought him back to those early days with his father. While he might have lost, Will wanted to remember to take away the positives and walk away from each defeat as a better player for the next time he stepped on the court.
All of Will’s experience came in handy when he joined the Tigers as a freshman. Will immediately became a varsity player that season. While it was intimidating for Will to compete against upperclassmen at first, everyone on the team welcomed to the program and helped Will prepare for what was to come in his high school career.
“It was intimidating to see experienced and well-rounded upperclassmen play tennis,” Will says. “I’m grateful, because the team was very accommodating and made me feel at home.”
Will kept climbing the ladder as a member of the Hand boys’ tennis program. By his junior year, Will was playing on the Tigers’ No. 2 doubles team. In his senior season, Will made the jump up to No. 1 doubles, teaming up with fellow senior Will de Chabert.
Will feels comfortable when he’s on the doubles court. Will embraces the teamwork that comes with playing doubles and gains confidence from having de Chabert by his side.
“Competing at the doubles level was a good fit for me. I feel as though I understand the doubles game much better than the singles game,” Will says. “There was a lot of pressure at first doubles, but still, my partner Will de Chabert and I made a great team.
Will and de Chabert had a chance to prove that they were a formidable doubles team during this year’s SCC Tournament. The duo won their No. 1 doubles match by a 6-2, 6-2 score to help Hand claim a 5-2 win against Fairfield Prep in the conference final, securing the team’s fourth-consecutive SCC title. Will says that coming home with the conference crown was the perfect way to cap off his high school career.
“Winning the SCC Tournament was a blast. It was just the perfect way to end our season,” says Will. “I couldn’t be happier with the outcome.”
Will and deChabert wound up earing All-SCC First Team accolades for their performance this year, joining seniors Sebastian Lowy and Matt Gulla and sophomore Elliot Booth as honorees. Will had watched other players on his team receive All-Conference honors during his formative years with the program. After earning that distinction as a senior, Will realized that all of his hard work had paid off.
“Earning All-SCC meant a lot to me,” Will says. “I remember the older kids when I was a freshman, sophomore and junior always getting it. I was able to finally relish in the accomplishments.”
Will gives a lot of credit to Head Coach Dawn Fagerquist for helping him become the tennis player that he is today. Fagerquist always told Will to play smart whenever he stepped between the baselines. Will says that the Tigers’ success never would have been possible without Coach Fagerquist’s guidance.
However, for Will, succeeding as a senior went beyond winning the conference title or making the All-SCC Team. While finishing out his time with the Tigers, Will wanted to make sure that he gave back to the underclassmen, much like the upperclassmen had done for him when he first entered the program.
“My senior year was so much fun. I tried my best to be a good role model for the underclassmen,” says Will. “I tried to make them feel as welcome as I did when I was a freshman.”
Coach Fagerquist has taken note of how much Will has both grown during his tenure with the team. The Tigers’ head coach says that Will always supported his teammates and proved a true leader for the Hand boys’ tennis squad this season.
“Will is a hard worker and a leader to his peers,” Fagerquist says. “He was a supporter to all his teammates.”
Will is going to be attending New York University later as a part of its Global Liberal Studies program. He plans on playing club tennis at the school.
As he graduates from Hand, Will won’t be forgetting his time with the Tigers any time soon. Will was able to play for one of the most accomplished tennis teams in the state throughout the past four years. It means the world to Will to have worn the Hand uniform and represent the Tigers on the court.
“It means a lot to say I play tennis for Daniel Hand. I think it goes unnoticed in the town that the tennis team has a record like no other,” says Will. “I’m proud to say I play tennis at Daniel Hand.”