The Wolverines walked away with a victory in their final league match of the season, defeating Chaminade 17-1 yesterday. The win brought the boys’ overall record to 9-1 and their league record to 9-0, continuing the now 199-game Mission League winning streak under Boys’ Tennis Program Head Chris Simpson.
The boys dominated their opponents in singles, not dropping a set all day, and not dropping a single game in the first round of matches. No. 1 singles player David Arkow ’20 made quick work of his first opponent, winning 6-0 in under 15 minutes.
Chaminade’s roster featured Brett Brinkman, who is ranked as a five-star and top-100 recruit by The Tennis Recruiting Network. Brinkman evidently posed no threat to the Wolverines, as they were able to defeat him in all three rounds of the match. The doubles team of Stanley Morris ’18 and team captain Sacha Pritzker ‘18 were able to dominate Brinkman and his partner, winning their match 6-1.
The match began with a pump-up speech from Pritzker, followed by loud cheers from team members as they lined up to meet their opponents.
The squad was faced with multiple injuries, including Timothy Li ’20 and Eli Nickoll ’21. Even while injured, team members show up to matches to support their teammates.
“It sucked being injured today,” Nickoll said. “I wanted to play and be able to contribute to the win, but I was confident in the team’s ability to come away with the win regardless. I came for the ride, to watch and cheer on my team.”
The only loss of the day came from doubles pairing Mike Thomas ’20 and Jonah Dickson ’20. Despite losing their first match of the day, the two were able to bounce back, winning their final two matches.
“I was unhappy that we lost,” Thomas said. “[Going into the next match], it was very important that we put out a good effort and had a good attitude. I think we showed why we’re such an effective doubles team.”
On April 25, Li, Morris and Pritzker will travel to the Ojai Tournament to compete against the best high-school players in Southern California.
“I’m really excited to play some doubles with Sacha [Pritzker], and hopefully be able to represent Harvard-Westlake well at this prestigious tournament,” Li said.
The squad will return to action May 1 at the All League Prelims.
