Friends Academy wins Nassau Small School boys team tennis championship
When the last match reached its conclusion Monday on Hofstra’s blue tennis courts, second-seeded Friends Academy had swept No. 1 Wheatley, 7-0. And that completed a Nassau Small School boys team tennis championship run that was really a year in the making.
Wheatley beat Friends Academy, 4-1, in the 2022 final en route to claiming the state title in Division II.
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When the last match reached its conclusion Monday on Hofstra’s blue tennis courts, second-seeded Friends Academy had swept No. 1 Wheatley, 7-0. And that completed a Nassau Small School boys team tennis championship run that was really a year in the making.
Wheatley beat Friends Academy, 4-1, in the 2022 final en route to claiming the state title in Division II.
“That was a big motivator over the summer,” Quakers senior captain Alistair Wright said. “I know I and everyone else on the team was training all year for this exact game.
“To come back and to be able to be in a position to win by even more of a margin is just a great feeling.”
Coach Owen Kassimir could see this coming from a now 15-1 team that also took the Nassau II-A title.
“I knew we had something special because the boys have been really close and tight this whole season,” Kassimir said.
About three weeks ago, he told his players, “We are a championship team. You just have to get out there and play.”
Friends Academy will play Suffolk champ Ross Thursday at Hofstra for a Long Island crown and a ticket to the Division II state final four.
“I think we should do fine there on Thursday,” Kassimir said. “And I think the state championships we should do well as well. … We can do it.”
Russell Notaris won, 6-3, 6-4, in first singles. The junior didn’t play for the Quakers last season, competing instead in USTA tournaments.
“But, honestly, it was a big mistake, but not because of the tennis, but because this team is honestly just a family,” Notaris said. “Everyone on this team loves each other.
“We’re not a great team because of one player. We’re a good team because we have so much depth and because we work so well together.”
William Bohner took second singles, 6-0, 6-0. Wright won third singles, 6-0, 6-1.
The doubles teams of Zachary Cohen and Daniel Duke (6-2, 6-3), Bryan Bin and Shuoming Chang (6-0, 6-0), Vedant Rawat and Vir Singh (6-2, 6-2) and Henry Koelmel and Ali Sayan (7-6, 6-0) won in straight sets, too.
So Wheatley finished 2-14 after going 19-0 in 2022. Just six players returned and the Wildcats moved from II-A to the tougher Nassau I.
“The better team won today,” coach Herman Lim said. “I’m proud of my guys playing as hard as they could.”