OCEAN CITY – In a close match Friday morning, the Mainland Mustang boys tennis team handed Ocean City its first loss of the season.
Mainland Regional (4-0) topped the Red Raiders (4-1) by a 3-2 score.
Mainland has proved troublesome for the Red Raiders over the years and was one of the few teams to defeat them in 2021 on their way to the South Jersey Group III finals, where the Mustangs lost a close 3-2 match to perennial power Moorestown.
This time the Red Raiders kept it close.
Ocean City’s first singles Charles DiCicco beat Mainland’s Mike Walton 6-4, 6-2, but Mustangs Alex Wise and Evan Himmelstein, at second and third singles, respectively, topped their Red Raider counterparts Kraig Redmond 6-0, 6-0 and Evan Cho 6-3, 6-3.
At first doubles, Ocean City’s Colin Bowman and Sawyer Lomax outlasted Mainland’s Joe Dib and Chris Guillen 7-5, 7-5.
At second doubles, it was Mainland’s Aaryan Deshpande and Jack Palaia over Chris Ganter and Jackson Barnes 6-2, 6-1.
Mainland coach Chris Connolly is working with a large assortment of veterans this season.
“We’re looking pretty good. We’re returning most of our players from last year and we were fortunate enough to have success last year. Losing to Moorestown hurt,” Connolly said as Friday’s match was in progress.
“We’re trying to get into the groove, but we’ve had a lot of cancellations, just like everybody else. This is just our fourth match, but it should have been our eighth so we haven’t hit our stride yet, but Ocean City is a great opportunity for us to see what we can do and it’s not disappointing.”
Walton, at first singles, is a senior who played second singles last year. Wise, a junior, moved up to second singles from third singles last year. At third singles is Himmelstein, who moved up from second doubles last season. “That’s where the biggest change in the lineup is,” Connolly said.
Joe Dib, who played second doubles last season, is playing first doubles with Guillen, who is starting varsity for the first time this season after doing fill-in work in the lineup last season. “He’s playing real well for us,” Connolly said.
At second doubles is last season’s first doubles team of Deshpande and Palaia – who were Cape-Atlantic League champions last season. The coach said the duo lost a three-set challenge match to Dib and Guillen for the top spot. Expect those two to battle again intrasquad as the season goes on, but Connolly pointed out there haven’t been that many practices so far.
“We’re very thankful,” he said of the lineup. “We’re senior-heavy and they’re good kids. We’re curious to see how far they can go.”
Looking back at last year’s South Jersey final, Connolly said his team had its chances against Moorestown with two of the matches going to three sets before the Quakers prevailed. “It was a tough one and a good opportunity for us, but the season is new this year.”
He said the team will have its challenges in the CAL this year as well, noting Ocean City and Millville have good teams this season.
“I’m looking forward and hopefully we can get some success and build on what we can be,” he said. The Mustangs will again chase a South Jersey title. “I think that’s the goal for everybody,” he said, “but for us it’s almost expected that we have to be competing for it. We may not get there, but that’s what we’re aiming for.”
The Mustangs were hosting St. Augustine Prep Tuesday, travel to Hammonton at 4 p.m. Wednesday and then host Millville at 11 a.m. Thursday.
Ocean City hosted Hammonton Tuesday and will host Christian Brothers Academy at 11 a.m. Wednesday.
– PHOTOS AND STORY BY DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
