Yet another strong regular season is now in the books for the Baldwinsville boys tennis team as it comfortably took second place in the CNY Counties League National division behind powerhouse Fayetteville-Manlius with a record of 10-2.
A sign of the Bees’ improvement was the way it played last Monday against Liverpool. Against the same side it beat by a narrow 4-3 margin on April 22, it gained one more point on the board, including a singles sweep, and topped the Warriors 5-2 this time around.
Alex Shaban had the closest of the three singles matches, getting past Lihkits Doddi 7-5, 7-5. It proved easier for Dan Watkins, who beat Aaron Alejo 6-1, 6-3, and for Sam Damato, who took a 6-4, 6-0 victory over Alexsandar Dzodic.
Splitting the four doubles matches, the Bees saw Scott Ferrari and Chris Dotto beat Alex Donle and Mike Fensken 6-3, 6-4, while Nick Walker and Mason Soeder won a 6-1, 6-3 showdown over Evan Maestri and Evan Vogue.
In the only one of the seven matches to go to three sets, Ryan Shirk and Becket Plumley lost, 6-1, 4-6, 6-2, to Kenneth Kraft and Matt Renk, with Isaiah Demoski and Eric Herrmann falling to the Munski brothers 6-3, 6-3.
Just two other regular-season match remained. Against Syracuse East, B’ville prevailed in a 7-0 shutout preserved when Damato, in first singles, rallied from a bad start to defeat Richy Llanos 2-6, 6-2, 6-3.
Watkins beat Friendly Say 6-4, 6-2, with Shaban rolling past John Hso 6-1, 6-1. In doubles action, another three-set match took place, where Rush and Demoski had to work past Muhialdain Muhialdain and T Moan Lian 7-5, 2-6 7-5.
Kyle Robinson and Eric Herrmann got a 7-5, 6-4 win over Matt O’Neil and Mike O’Neil, while Walker and Dotto beat Rich Collier and Nick Lozaponi 6-1, 6-3. Ferrari and Soeder earned a 6-1, 6-2 decision over Samir Subba and Hanh Duong.
A far more dramatic encounter took place Thursday, between B’ville and Cicero-North Syracuse. Despite not getting a point in singles, the Bees recovered to win all four doubles matches and edge the Northstars 4-3.
Two of those points came with ease, with Walker and Dotto blanking Jack Irwin and Nate Perrotta 6-0, 6-0 as Soeder and Ferrari got close to their own shutout in a 6-0, 6-1 win over Karin Inthirakot and Mason Gross.
Damato, paired with Shirk, survived a first-set tie-breaker to beat Harry Rose and Mitch Eager 7-6 (7-1), 6-0, leaving it up to Demoski and Herrmann, who fell behind John Barraco and Jake Tesfai, but rallied and then won by a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 margin for the clinching point.
Among the three singles matches, only Rush was able to get to a third set, but he lost, 6-1, 6-7 (9-7), 6-3, to Connor Millias. Watkins was competitive in a 6-3, 7-5 defeat to Justin Kegebein, while Shaban lost, 6-3, 6-1, to Rich Dennis.
