By: Ken Weingartner
As South Brunswick High School boys tennis coach Nancy McDonald reviews the recently completed season, one gets the idea that the best is yet to come for the Vikings.
That’s because her review could pretty much serve as a preview of the next two years.
South Brunswick, playing with a lineup made entirely of underclassmen, ended the season 12-6 overall, 9-5 in the Greater Middlesex Conference Red Division, and qualified for the NJSIAA Group IV Central Jersey team tournament.
The Vikings’ three singles players, barring the unforeseen, should grace the courts at SBHS as a unit through 2004. That group combined to go 46-17 this season.
"I’m very pleased," McDonald said. "We had two solid wins over Old Bridge, which placed third in the county tournament. We have a bright future. We’re still playing in the Red Division, but we seem to be holding our own at that level. These kids gained a lot of experience and know what’s ahead."
Leading the way for the Vikings was sophomore first singles player Shangril Shah. He finished the year 19-3 and qualified for the NJSIAA Singles Tournament, where he lost in the first round. All three of his losses this season were to state qualifiers. In addition, he placed third in the GMCT and was named to the all-GMC team.
Sophomore Sean Hammer posted a 17-5 record at third singles, where he also placed third in the GMCT. Steven Yu, a freshman, went 10-9 at second singles and showed steady improvement throughout the season, McDonald said.
Andrew Tsang and Mashuk Billah, both juniors, went 9-10 at first doubles while the second doubles squad of sophomores Paul Cooper and Shishir Sharma posted a 12-6 mark.
As a unit, the Vikings received the GMC Team Sportsmanship Award.
McDonald, in her third year at the helm, said this was the first time she had such a young squad.
"Because there’s no junior varsity program, it’s always been a senior-junior dominated team," she said. "That’s when they finally have a chance to break into the varsity lineup."
Beginning next year, the Vikings will have a complete JV program. McDonald hopes to put together a 10- to 12-match schedule against teams from Middlesex, Somerset, Mercer, and Union counties. She said Edison, Bishop Ahr, North Brunswick, Old Bridge, Franklin, Hillsborough, and Bridgewater-Raritan could be foes on the slate.
"We’re hoping to piece something together," McDonald said. "When the varsity is at home, the JV will have a match away. That way we can still have coinciding practice time as a team."
The junior varsity program should benefit South Brunswick, which had just one senior Punit Buch on its 18-man roster. The remainder of the team was made up of four juniors, 10 sophomores, and three freshmen. Buch this year won the second singles title at a GMCT for non-varsity players while the duo of sophomores Bashir Geer and Mark Rue took the crown at first doubles.
"Having the JV team will give players an opportunity to get some match play in so that if their needed for the varsity, they’ve got some experience," McDonald said.
Of course, looking at the Vikings’ roster, experience is something the team shouldn’t have to worry about for quite some time.
