HHS boys blanked in CJ 4 tennis final

Raiders fall to WWPS for second straight year

By: Rudy Brandl
   
   SOUTH BRUNSWICK — Everything had to be working for the Hillsborough High boys’ tennis team to have a chance at knocking off West Windsor-Plainsboro South in Tuesday’s Central Jersey Group 4 championship match.
   Unfortunately, nothing went right for the Raiders, who were shut out in the sectional final. The combination of injuries, sloppy play and a very talented bunch of Pirates forced a quick and easy match.
   "We did not play well today," HHS head coach Larry Johnson said. "They’re a very good team. They’re in the top five in the state for a reason. They’re strong at every position."
   The Pirates boast a more impressive lineup than the one that eliminated Hillsborough in a 3-2 thriller in last year’s CJ 4 semifinals. Their singles lineup is stronger with former No. 2 player Leland Richardson now playing third singles. Everyone else in the lineup has experience and skill.
   "We lost to them last year in the semifinals and they didn’t really lose anybody," Hillsborough senior third singles player Mark Apostolos said. "Their singles lineup is better than last year."
   Hillsborough entered the match with most of its lineup banged up. First singles player John Wu has been hampered by a sore left wrist, an injury that forced him to retire after just four games. Second singles player Chris Plaskon has played the entire season with a knee brace. First doubles player Tom Gross (back) and second singles player Stefan Apostolos (knees) also weren’t playing at full strength.
   "We are an ice-pack crew," Johnson said.
   Johnson liked his team’s doubles matchups and was hopeful Plaskon would prevail at second doubles. He knew it would be difficult for Wu to play in pain and figured the third singles match would be tough for his team to win.
   Wu was trailing 3-1 when he retired and Mark Apostolos dropped a 6-2, 6-1 match to Richardson. Gross and first doubles partner Ross Friedman fought gamely in the second set but Dennis Tuan and Stewart Fernandez posted a 6-1, 6-4 victory. West Windsor’s Piray Sekar and Junjiro Mori notched a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Stefan Apostolos and Tim Le at second doubles.
   Plaskon tried to salvage a team point for the Raiders but wound up on the short end of a 6-3, 6-2 decision against Steven Fernandez.
   The Raiders advanced to the finals with an exciting 3½-1½ victory over North Brunswick in last Friday’s semifinals at East Brunswick Racquet Club. Mark Apostolos came through with a huge victory at third singles, coming from behind to post a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over Amit Singh.
   "I knew I could maximize my first serve because the courts are much faster indoors," Apostolos said. "I used less spin and more flat serves and I hit a couple of aces. I used that to my advantage."
   Hillsborough’s doubles teams came through with straight set victories against North Brunswick. Gross and Friedman survived a tie-break and picked up steam in their 7-6 (7-3), 6-2 victory over Eric Schwager and Jan Taggan. Le and Stefan Apostolos cruised to a 6-0, 6-2 triumph over Sardor Gaziev and Matt Wolfson to give the Raiders an early lead.
   The Raiders (15-7) were hoping to avenge last year’s tough loss to the Pirates in Tuesday’s sectional final, but will have to wait until next year to pursue another championship.
   "We just didn’t play good ball today," said Johnson, who won two Central Jersey Group 2 titles coaching the Montgomery girls but is now 0-3 in sectional finals at Hillsborough combining the boys and girls. "We’ll be there again."