Blue Waves boys tennis program gaining steam
The Riverhead boys tennis team couldn’t field a junior varsity squad until last year. A lot has changed since. When coach Michael Laffey took over the program three years ago, he wanted to bring interest back to the sport. Today he has 30 players in the program scattered across varsity and JV.
“The program is very healthy now,” Laffey said. “We’ve definitely increased our numbers year after year. Having the JV team back last year has done a lot for us. It’s key for the players to get development and experience at the JV level before going up to varsity. We’re starting to see the benefits.”
Riverhead’s first singles player, Cyril Turner, got the benefit of playing JV last year, and now he’s the face of the program — even though he’s only a sophomore.
“Turner played doubles last year before taking the leap to first singles this year,” Laffey said. “It’s a big step up for him but he’s been up for the challenge. He’s shown up with a lot of initiative this year, and the results are starting to show.”
In Thursday’s non-league match against West Babylon, Turner beat Kieran Flynn (6-2, 4-6, 6-2). The Blue Waves lost only one match and defeated West Babylon 6-1 at Riverhead High School. It was a strong performance for a team that is looking to be much more competitive this season.
“There’s going to be days that our youth is exposed,” Laffey said. “But these guys are working super hard at getting better every day. And that’s all we can ask of them at this point. By the time they’ll be seniors, they’ll have so much experience under their belt.”
Riverhead’s second singles player, Chase Savio — only a freshman — made a massive comeback after losing the first set, 1-6. Savio ended up emerging victorious after winning the next two sets, 6-4.
“Even though he’s only a freshman, he’s a big part of our team,” Laffey said. “Our goal with him is to continue to improve and get bigger, faster and stronger over the next few years.”
Getting wins from the two top spots sets up a team for success, but there were wins up and down the board on Thursday. Macklin Jordan won in straight sets (6-0, 6-0) in third singles. Liam Hart and Logan Levesque dropped the first set in second doubles, 4-6, before winning the next two, 6-1 and 6-2. Tim Furio and Jakob Shultze earned the victory in third doubles (6-2, 6-0). Sean Dougherty and Braylen Blom closed out the night in fourth doubles with the final win (6-2, 6-1).
“Our team goal is to come into every practice with the specific intent to get better at something,” Laffey said. “There’s specific skills every tennis player needs to have. We can’t teach everything in one day, but I’m hoping by the end of the season, all of our guys will sharpen their skills.”
The growing interest in the tennis program is something that Laffey continues to foster.
“We just try to have a positive vibe here and I think kids are gravitating toward that,” the coach said. “I want to make it as fun as possible and as exciting as possible. It’s an energetic sport. I love showing the kids how great the sport of tennis can be. Then they tell their friends and it makes a ripple effect throughout and here we are. My hope is that the sport just continues to grow here at Riverhead.”
