Team exits CJ 4 tourney in semifinals
By: Rudy Brandl
WEST WINDSOR The Hillsborough High boys’ tennis team suffered an agonizing elimination loss from the Central Jersey Group 4 playoffs last Thursday at Mercer County Park.
Fourth-ranked Hillsborough (18-6) came very close to knocking off undefeated top-seeded West Windsor Plainsboro South but fell short in a dramatic 3-2 match that had fans on the edge of their seats for nearly three hours. The Raiders, primed to make a run at the sectional title, squandered a golden opportunity for the upset and experienced another near-miss in tournament competition.
"It’s tough," said Raider head coach Larry Johnson, whose team finished second in the Somerset County Tournament when both doubles teams lost in the third set of their championship matches. "They’re a good team and we had to play well to beat them. We were four points away from winning. You have to make a decision to win it."
The team result didn’t merely come down to one match it was decided by a tie-breaker in the final set of the second singles match between HHS junior John Wu and WWPS freshman Leland Richardson. The Raiders had battled back to tie the team score at 1-1 and 2-2 and Wu was looking to complete the rally and send his team to the sectional finals against East Brunswick.
Wu had the match on his racquet, serving with a 5-3 lead in the third set. Richardson broke back and wound up taking a 6-5 lead before Wu forced a tie-breaker with a service break of his own. Although serves weren’t a major factor in the match, they helped decide the tie-breaker in Richardson’s favor.
The WWPS freshman produced four service winners, including a blistering serve on match point, to close out a 7-4 win in the tie-breaker. Wu, on the other hand, helped his opponent with two double faults. The HHS junior played a solid match but couldn’t overcome that crucial six-point swing.
"I made more errors than he did," Wu said. "That was basically it."
Wu made a remarkable recovery after losing the first set in seven games. He knew the Raiders needed him to stay in the match and evened the score with a 6-3 victory in the second set.
"I just started getting more balls in," Wu said. "I knew if I did that, he’d miss eventually."
The second singles duel was a hard-hitting affair with more pace than the match between the top players on the adjacent court. Richardson was a big hitter prone to mistakes and Wu tried to remain steady. Richardson elevated his game and serve in the tie-breaker.
After falling behind 3-0 on a double fault and two service winners by Richardson, Wu rallied to tie the score before the players changed sides. Richardson regained the lead with another booming serve and Wu double faulted again to make it 5-3. Wu scored a service winner of his own to cut the deficit to 5-4, but an unforced error led to match point.
"He should have been trying to stay in the point instead of going for a kill shot," Johnson said. "That was a turning point right there at 5-4. That was a big play."
Wu’s match was magnified because of the circumstances. Any time each team has two wins, everyone is watching one decisive battle and the pressure is on.
"It’s extremely difficult," said HHS senior second doubles player Adam Mamawala, who teamed with Piotr Mankowski to post a 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 victory. "Whenever you’re a player of any sport, the toughest thing to do is watch somebody else. I had full confidence in John. We just came up a bit short today."
Mamawala and Mankowski came back after losing the first set and tied the team score at 1-1 after the first doubles team of Will Daly and Mark Apostolos were defeated in straight sets. Raider third singles player Chris Plaskon lost a tough 7-5, 6-3 result to Russell Nitzberg, but the visitors drew even again when first singles player Thomas Kinrade posted a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Shintaro Mori.
Kinrade was somewhat aware of the team situation but tried to remain focused on his task. He also provided occasional words of encouragement for Wu on the adjacent court in the stadium.
"I wasn’t 100 percent sure, but I knew second doubles had won," Kinrade said. "I was pretty sure we were down 2-1."
That left the HHS destiny in the hands of the top two players. Kinrade gave his team a chance with a steady performance that included some fantastic backhand volleys at the net.
"I wanted to stay aggressive," Kinrade said. "I was staying at the baseline too much in the beginning, so I started to move in a little and take more balls at the net. I don’t usually hit as many as that, and I’m happy I hit them flat right down the line. That was working for me today."
That left the pressure squarely on Wu’s shoulders, a tough and sometimes unfair predicament.
"It’s a tough pressure position, but you’re going to have those in tennis," Johnson said. "We knew they had a very deep team and we needed to get performances at every position. We could’ve had more production at the other positions. They were better than us today and they’re very deserving of that No. 2 ranking in the state."

