Fords’ tennis is off to a noteworthy start. The boys are 4-0 to start the season, which will keep them in contention for another state’s appearance if this winning trend continues.
Fifth Former Kaiser Zhao has had multiple grueling matches, each lasting until sunset. Luckily, he has gone undefeated in these matches, helping the team maintain its current undefeated record.
On Wednesday, April 9th, Ford’s tennis rematched last year’s PAISAA final against Germantown Friends Central. The match was expected to be close, but the Fords dominated, prevailing in a match score of 6-1.
“All of the matches were very close. That said, the stronger team is always able to close out matches when they are tight, and that’s what we did,” Fifth Former Jonah Grunes said.
“With the little amount of time we have during the season, the best thing I can do as a coach is to make practices emulate match day.”
Coach Tracy Tooke
Tennis is all about consistency in the final games of the match, and the Fords executed when it mattered most.
The Fords have been putting in countless hours of training this past month. Practices have been structured around matchplay rather than drilling, preparing the boys for regularly occurring matches as the season progresses.
“With the little amount of time we have during the season, the best thing I can do as a coach is to make practices emulate match day,” Coach Tracy Tooke said. “There is no time to work on fine details during the season, which is why I spend so much time helping everyone work on their ability to compete rather than their ability to make ten shots out of ten as opposed to nine shots out of ten.”
The Fords’ next few weeks are busy. On Thursday, April 24th, Zhao, Sixth Former Phineas Manogue, and Fifth Former Drew Carassco will participate in the annual Inter-Ac Singles Tournament. The team won the singles tournament last year and hopes to win once again.
The following day, the Fords’ doubles teams will play in the annual doubles tournament. The boys will carry their winning momentum into these tough matches. Directly after the tournaments, Fords’ Tennis plays a tough stretch of Inter-Ac matches against Malvern Prep (Away), Germantown Academy (Home), and Episcopal Academy (Away).
The rest of the season is packed with difficult matches. However, the momentum is right where it needs to be—in the hands of the Fords.
