It sounds like a riddle — “How can you win a high school tennis championship without being in high school?”
The answer is “practice.” Eighth-grader Lucas Arora and seventh-grader Danny Leach started playing at an early age. On May 16, they won the OCIAA Tennis Tournament as a doubles team at Match Point in Goshen.
Ernesto Dillon easily defended his singles title to complete a Cornwall sweep.
“Our goal was to have fun in the tournament,” Lucas said a few days after the historic victory. “A lot of people were watching, but we kept our heads in the game.”
The outcome may have surprised some spectators and irritated a few older players, but the middle school duo had a good idea of what to expect. A week earlier they had won a doubles tournament at Match Point against many of the same players.
The boys played first and second singles for Cornwall at the start of the season, and then moved down a notch after Ernesto recovered from a concussion and returned to the lineup.
The middle-schoolers have played against the four-time county champion and believe that he’s made them better — although Danny admits that Ernesto’s serve is very hard to return. A lot of older players may feel the same way, because Ernesto scored several aces in the tournament.
Back in March, Lucas and Danny decided to enter the post-season as a wild card doubles team. They practiced with Michael Miller and Matt Wheeler, who played first doubles in Cornwall’s matches. And then they prepared by working with Matt Anastasi, a recent graduate who knows a lot about the OCIAA Doubles Tournament. He paired with Sam Lawyer to win the title during his last two years in school. “He’s been a big supporter,” the young players agreed.
“Our advantage is technique,” Lucas observed during an interview in school. “A lot of kids teach themselves. We had a chance to learn from professionals.”
Danny, who may be the quieter member of the team, added that they had learned tactics and positioning from their coaches at Sportsplex.
The duo dropped the first two games in the finals before getting on a roll. There wasn’t much time, however, to enjoy their championship. The Section IX tournament was due to begin on May 20, and the boys were scheduled to play a team from New Paltz.
Miller and Wheeler had the second seed in the OCIAA event, but were ousted in the second round by a wild card team. Matt Alvarez and Michael Doulin also departed in the second round after dropping a close match.
DOUBLES: Round of 32: Alvarez-Doulin W. 6-1, 6-0. Round of 16: Alvarez-Doulin L. 5-7, 3-6, Arora-Leach W. 6-1, 6-0, Miller-Wheeler L. 3-6, 4-6. Quarterfinals: Arora-Leach W. 6-1, 6-0. Semifinals: Arora-Leach W. 6-1, 6-1. Finals: Arora-Leach W. 6-3, 6-0.
SINGLES: Round of 16: Dillon got a bye. Quarterfinals: Dillon W. 6-1, 6-2. Semifinals: Dillon W. 6-3, 6-1. Finals: Dillon W. 6-2, 6-2.
NOTE: Arora and Leach won 48 games during the tournament while losing only seven. Dillon’s mark was 36-11.
