Boys tennis
By: Jim Green
Hopewell Valley Central High School boys tennis player David Rose took full advantage of his shot at redemption Friday.
Rose, who 10 days earlier dropped the deciding match in a 3-2 loss to West Windsor-Plainsboro North, catapulted the Bulldogs into the state tournament with a clutch 6-1, 7-5 victory over Notre Dame’s Ken Ellsworth. Rose’s performance clinched Hopewell Valley’s 3-2 home win over the Fighting Irish that pushed the Bulldogs’ record to 4-3 and qualified them for the state tournament.
"It feels great," Rose, a junior, said. "There’s a lot of relief."
The Bulldogs (4-3 in the Colonial Valley Conference) would not have been in a must-win situation Friday if Rose had been able to pull out his earlier match against the Knights’ Brian Wong. But Rose suffered cramps late in that match, eventually losing a hard-fought, three-set decision.
There would be no such letdown this time.
"He (Rose) is a gut-it-out player," Hopewell Valley coach Tony Suozzo said. "He plays with a lot of heart. He’s been in some tough matches, and he’s a tough player."
Hopewell Valley entered the match with Notre Dame its last before the state tournament cutoff date at 3-3, needing a victory to qualify for the tournament. The Bulldogs quickly jumped out to a 2-1 lead with straight-sets wins at first singles and first doubles and a loss at second doubles. They were left needing a win from either Rose at third singles or freshman Matt McGranaghan at second singles to clinch the match.
Rose and McGranaghan cruised through the first sets of their respective matches before falling behind 4-3 in their second sets. While McGranaghan dropped his second set, Rose battled back, breaking Ellsworth’s serve at 5-5 and going on to win 7-5.
"I just wanted to go out there and play like every other day," Rose said, "just like any other match. It was getting tight. He (Ellsworth) was aggressive."
McGranaghan eventually pulled out a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 win over the Fighting Irish’s Brett Zaba. Although the Bulldogs ended up winning easily, Suozzo was glad Rose put the victory away early.
"Dave (Rose) finished it off in two sets instead of taking it to three and making us sweat," Suozzo said.
Suozzo believed senior first singles player Adam Friedland, the first player off the court with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Notre Dame’s Tom Connolly, set the tone for the match.
"Adam (Friedland) was very focused," Suozzo said. "He came out and took care of business."
The Bulldogs also received a major contribution from their much-maligned doubles squad, as the first doubles combination of senior Marc-Andre Basile and junior Eric Fengler won their second consecutive match, 6-0, 6-2 over the Fighting Irish’s Mark Patton and Dave Bacola.
"Marc and Eric played very well," Suozzo said. "We’ve mixed around with the doubles, and I like the way it looks right now."
The Bulldogs were coming off a 5-0 road win over Ewing last Thursday that put them in position to clinch a spot in the state tournament. Friedland, McGranaghan, Rose and both Hopewell Valley doubles teams won in straight sets against the Blue Devils.
Hopewell Valley then defeated Notre Dame, which entered the match 5-1, in a must-win situation despite being without starting second doubles player Will Fassbender, a junior. Fassbender was away on a band trip.
"It’s great," Suozzo said. "We had a rally. When you know it’s do-or-die, and to come through against Notre Dame is a great accomplishment for out guys."
The Bulldogs then turned their attention to the Mercer County Tournament, which began Monday at Mercer County Park. Friedland, 5-2 on the season, was seeded fifth at first singles, while McGranaghan, 6-1 in his rookie season, was seeded fourth at second singles.
"The first half of our season is to get to the state tournament," Rose said. "I’m just glad we got in. Now we have to focus on the county tournament."
Friedland, McGranaghan and the Bulldogs’ second doubles team of sophomores Rohit Singh and Dan Spencer all advanced to the quarterfinals of the county tournament. Only McGranaghan advanced to the second day of play, defeating Lawrence’s Josh Margolis 7-6 (7-4), 6-3 to move into the semifinals.
The semifinals of the tournament were to be held Wednesday at Mercer County Park.
"Matt (McGranaghan) is in a pretty elite class," Suozzo said. "He’s going to have a stiff challenge. It’ll be a great experience for him."

