Patience productive for Stanley

By: Ken Weingartner
   Patience, it has been said, is a virtue.
   It also can produce winning tennis, as Monroe High junior Ken Stanley is discovering.
   Stanley is in his first season playing singles for the Falcons after moving up to the No. 1 slot from doubles. It has taken him a while to get adjusted to the singles game, particularly the pace.
   "It’s a pretty big change," said Stanley, who was 7-10 for Monroe entering yesterday’s scheduled match against Freehold Borough in the first round of the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III team tournament.
   "The games are much slower paced because there’s not a guy at the net all the time. I had to learn to be more patient. I tended to go to the net too soon or on shots that weren’t good enough. That’s tough to do when you’ve got the whole court to cover. There’s no room error at first singles. I can’t get away with some of the shots that you might normally get away with."
   
   Monroe lost all three of its singles players from last season, so Stanley was immediately thrust into the No. 1 spot rather than having a year of adjustment playing at second or third singles. Nearly all of his opponents have at least a year of singles play under their belts.
   "This year will help me a lot because I got to see what competition is out there at first singles and what I need to improve on," Stanley said. "I’m looking forward to next season and making the adjustments I need to make to compete. It’s been a good chance to hone my skills a little bit."
   Stanley started playing tennis at the age of 10, after watching his younger brother pick up the sport and take lessons.
   "That got me hooked on it," Stanley said. "It looked like an interesting sport. I played baseball for nine years, and when I got to high school I had to decide between baseball and tennis. I decided I wanted to try more of a solo sport rather than a team sport."
   It was that individual aspect of the sport that initially attracted Stanley.
   "If you practice hard enough and do what you’re supposed to, there’s a good chance you’ll win," he said. "I like the fact that you only have yourself to depend on."
   Monroe entered Thursday’s state tourney match with a 13-5 overall record after posting wins over Colonia and Woodbridge this week. The Falcons were seeded No. 7 in the state tournament and the winner of yesterday’s match will face No. 2 Princeton next week.
   In addition to Stanley, singles players Kris Worman and Darren Goldberg plus the doubles teams of Justin Bauman-Kevin Houle and Nick Carofilis-Ashish Patel all have produced solid seasons. Stanley and the doubles teams advanced through the preliminary round of last weekend’s Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament before losing while Goldberg reached the second round.
   "Most of our singles guys are evenly matched," Stanley said. "It’s always pretty close when we play each other. There are no real major differences between us. Our doubles have been solid all year, too."
   And with Stanley and Goldberg among the players returning next season, the Falcons should be solid again in 2006.
   "I just need to become more consistent and patient," Stanley said. "My ground strokes have definitely improved. I just need to do the same (good) things every time I play. I just need to play my game."