Boys Tennis: Sharks Best Warriors, 4-1

NORTH EASTHAM — Brooks Park in Harwich, where the Monomoy boys tennis team plays its home matches, gets a little bit of wind. 

But according to head coach Reuben Bowman, it’s nothing like the ocean gusts that blew Friday at Nauset Regional High School, where visiting Monomoy won 4-1.

The match was a “very competitive, very good day of tennis,” with wind a factor for players, Bowman said.

 “It was really good to see a different side of them,” Bowman said. “They got to think on their feet. They got to change up their style of play and play a little differently this time.”

In the win for Monomoy (7-1), freshman Roman Pavluchenko defeated senior Lucas Wilson-Bevington 6-4, 6-0 in first singles, while senior captain Ryan Casey beat senior Will Murphy 6-2, 6-2 in second singles. 

Sophomore Zach Shields defeated sophomore Lucas Patton 7-6 (7-5), 6-3 in third singles, and in first doubles, senior captain Blake Noonan and eighth grader Nick Hadden defeated seniors Soren Jones-Carlson and Asher Woods 6-4, 6-2. 

 “That was impressive by both teams to stay competitive, and we were fortunate to come out with a win,” Bowman said.

Monomoy has won four straight and is off to a “good, strong start,” according to Casey. The Sharks are a younger group, with multiple players getting early varsity experience. The two senior captains, Noonan and Casey, and two juniors are the only upperclassmen on the team.

 “We have some really good co-captains in Blake and Ryan that are really leading the team well at the varsity level,” Bowman said.

Last year, Monomoy went 12-6 and reached the round of 16 in the Division 4 state tournament. Beyond championship aspirations, Noonan said the end of season goal is to get their new players “up to speed.”

 “Young team, really,” Noonan said. “Up and coming. Proud of us. Doing pretty good.”

Nauset dropped to 2-4 with the loss. Head coach Andy Lisle said he anticipated the team would play better the next time they face the Sharks.

 “Monomoy is always tough,” Lisle said. “They’ve got some good players. The difference was they had a little bit more intensity, and they won the bigger points.”

Nauset’s sole win in the match came from a duo that hadn’t ever played together previously, according to Lisle, as junior Wyatt Carroll and freshman Ronan O’Brien defeated Monomoy junior Ethan Seufert and sophomore Tom Hereford 6-2, 6-3 in second doubles.

Lisle said O’Brien is “a player to watch.”

 “He can make moves that he doesn’t even know he can make,” Lisle said.

The Warriors, who went 11-5 last season and lost in the round of 32 in the Division 3 state tournament, are “a very supportive group,” Lisle said. “We definitely have some things to do, but I am hopeful that towards the end of the season it all comes together,” he said.