Sports

Boys Tennis: Southold beats Riverhead on a good tennis day

Sometimes it’s not whether you win or lose.

Sometimes it’s about playing in decent weather so you can play up to your potential and enjoy yourself as well.

Monday was a perfect day for sports, especially tennis, in Riverhead.

With temperatures hovering around 70 degrees, Southold/Greenport and Riverhead finally got their Suffolk County League VIII boys tennis match in after not one, not two, but three postponements.

“It gives the kids an understanding of all the indoor work that we’ve been doing,” said Clippers coach Andrew Sadowski, whose team (6-1, 6-1) defeated the Blue Waves, 6-1. “All those freezing cold days, it’s nice to come out and play and move around and not have to deal with windchill factors.”

Ditto from Riverhead coach Rosaleen D’Orsogna, whose squad (0-7, 0-7) was forced to practice indoors because of the cold and rain in March and early April while playing in less than ideal conditions as well.

“At the beginning of the season, it was so cold,” she said. “Our first game, the kids were coming off the courts saying they couldn’t feel their hands. And that’s not tennis weather. We can’t wear gloves. If you wear a lot of bundled clothing, you’re not moving the way you need to move. You don’t see pros playing that way.”

Senior Jens Summerlin certainly enjoyed his day in the sun for the Blue Waves. He defeated Xavier Kahn in first singles, 6-2, 6-2.

“The past weeks we’ve been playing in 50-60 degree weather with a lot of wind where we have to wear pants,” he said. “It’s good playing in warm weather. We don’t have to worry about that, but the wind is warm also. I find it important because it’s relaxing more than the cold.”

As it turned out, Summerlin was the lone Riverhead player who won his match as Southold dominated the day.

Xavier’s twin brother, Jacob, won the second singles match against Brendan Gregory, 6-1, 6-1. Cole Brigham defeated Juan Rivas at third singles, 6-3, 6-1, and Matt Civiok outlasted Jason Thompson at fourth singles, 6-4, 2-6, 10-6, in the closest match.

Southold swept the three doubles matches.

In first doubles, Devon Quinones and Mario Contreras downed brothers Freyscher and Ferdy Patzon, 6-0, 6-0. Mark Moran and Alex Kondora defeated Alejandro Tomas and Marillon Alvardo, 6-3, 6-0, at second doubles, and Charlie Bonilla and Jared Palumbo bested Livardo Torres and Brian Gallo at third doubles, 6-1, 6-2.