NHS Girls’ And Boys’ Tennis—

Girls A Possible SWC Contender; Boys Have Depth Once Again

By Andy Hutchison

Newtown High School’s girls’ and boys’ tennis teams each have plenty of depth and their respective coaches are looking forward to promising campaigns.

The girls’ tennis team has plenty of stiff competition in the South-West Conference. There’s perennial powerhouse and winner of 64 straight matches, Weston, along with always-tough Joel Barlow of Redding, Pomperaug of Southbury, and Lauralton Hall of Milford.

But don’t count out those Nighthawks.

“We’re going to be a contender and I am very excited,” Newtown Coach Maureen Maher said. “This is the strongest team I’ve ever had.”

The Nighthawks returned most of their talent from last year’s team, which went 9-6 and advanced to the Class L State Tournament’s quarterfinals.

The most notable loss was top doubles player senior and captain Kristen Tanner, who is out for the season with a back injury she battled during the fall soccer campaign.

Newtown, in addition to retaining a bulk of its lineup from a year ago, did gain a group of four freshman newcomers to the varsity roster — led by Lauren Frazetta, who will start the season in the singles lineup.

Newtown’s senior captains are Ashley Cech and Christina Ciamarra. Other key returnees are senior Nicole Vournazos and juniors Meghan Loose, Caitlin O’Mahoney, Ale Fuentes, and Sara Benson.

The Nighthawks have an addition to the coaching staff. Bess Hutchison will help Maher at the courts. The home courts this year will be at Treadwell Park while construction continues at the high school. The girls will juggle court time with the boys, who also boast a deep lineup of players battling for positioning on the team.

“Certainly, our strength last year was depth — and I think we have even more of that this year,” boys’ coach Marty Margulies said. “I have 15 kids, every one of whom is a player, every one of whom could hold his own in the starting lineup against any school.”

Gone are three graduates from last year’s 12-2 team: top two singles players Adam Wenick and Evan Batzer, along with one of the No. 1 doubles players, Joe Cappiello.

The Nighthawks were runner-up in the SWC a year ago. The season highlights included wins over Pomperaug and a Barlow program it had not previously beaten in the course of several seasons.

Just how far this year’s team can go will hinge on both how well the Hawks perform and the strength of opponents, which will be determined as the season unfolds.

The senior captains are Casey Tenney, Timo Roehrs, Peter Manos, and Colin Jacob. Roehrs, Manos, Rob Beier, Tenney, and Jacob were leading singles lineup candidates as preseason gave way to the start of the regular campaign this week.

Other key players whom Margulies has on the team are Connor Howell, Tyler Ruefenacht, Cam McCleary, Rich Andreotta, and Kieran Lardner.