CENTRAL NEW YORK – A long-time rivalry marked the opening of the area high school boys tennis season as Skaneateles took on Marcellus last Tuesday afternoon, and the Lakers got the best of it, taking a 4-1 decision.
Sweeping all three singles matches, Skaneateles saw Jake Salzhauer rally past the Mustangs’ Matt Vitale 2-6, 7-5, 6-4, while Max Karpinski defeated Chris Barbaro 6-1, 6-2 and Marty McNeil won 6-0, 6-1 over Tucker Guerina.
Marcellus got on the board when Caeden Cox and Dan Fox beat Ethan Pickup and Evan Wingfield 6-4, 6-4, even as the Lakers’ duo of Hatcher Gutchess and Marcus McClanahan beat Mike Deveroux and Tyler Szalach 6-3, 6-2.
Skaneateles again proved successful 24 hours later against Cazenovia, claiming this latest Lakers clash by a 4-1 margin.
Getting both points in doubles, Sknaeateles had Gutchess and McClanahan beat Andrew Falso and Gabe Reagan 6-4, 6-4, while Pickup, now paired with Nick Cerimeli, beat Evan Molloy and Carter Ruddy 6-4, 6-4.
Karpinski lost in singles to Traian Cherciu 6-0, 6-2, but Salzhauer battled in singles past Garrett Lounsbury 6-4, 7-5, while McNeil defeated Jake Wardell 7-5, 6-0.
Meanwhile, Westhill, who combines its team with Onondaga, got underway against Mexico and took a 3-2 defeat to the Tigers.
In singles, Shay Smyth won 6-1, 6-0 over Johannes Burkhart as Jon Massaro and Faith Taylor took defeats. Zane Eldred and Caleb Fowler paired in doubles to defeat Joe Boulais and Allen Scott 6-4, 6-3 as Evelynn Loan and Zero Stiner fell in two sets.
Marcellus and Westhill/OCS met up with each other on Friday afternoon, and it was the Mustangs, by a 4-1 margin, getting its first victory of the season.
Both doubles points went to Marcellus as the teams of Deveroux-Szalach and Cox-Fox lost just one game in four combined sets.
Smyth, in singles, put his team on the board, blanking Barbaro 6-0, 6-0. The Mustangs countered with Vitale handling Massaro 6-4, 6-3 and Guerina topping Stiner 6-1, 6-0.
West Genesee entered its new season on Friday, taking on Auburn and getting just a single point in a 6-1 defeat to the Maroons.
Noah Ruston got that point for the Wildcats in first singles, romping past Ryan Stechuckak 6-1, 6-1. Auburn won every other point in straight sets, with the closest doubles match coming when Joe Paoli and Nathan Smith took a 6-4, 6-1 loss to Troy Wagner and Thomas Deming.
