WEST WINDSOR: Song helps Pirates to final

South boys tennis faces top seed

By Justin Feil, Assistant Sports Editor
   Michael Song only knows winning, at least on the team side of tennis.
   ”I play a lot of tournaments,” said the freshman from West Windsor-Plainsboro South. “I’ve lost a lot in the past year.”
   Song picked up his most impressive individual win of the season to help the third-seeded Pirates top second-seeded Montgomery, 4-1, last Wednesday in the Central Jersey Group IV state tournament semifinals.
   ”It was closer than 4-1 sounds,” said Pirates coach Jim Giovacchini after improving to 17-0. “It was a competitive match. That’s good. That’s what you need. You don’t need blowouts every time. That should toughen us up for the tougher matches coming. Many good teams are still alive in the state tournament.”
   The Pirates face a tough one today, their toughest test since a mid-season match against Holmdel, when they take on top-seeded South Brunswick for the sectional championship.
   ”I think it’s going to be really hard,” Song said. “Our singles are going to have a lot of trouble with their lineup. And our doubles will have a tough time.”
   South Brunswick ended WW-P North’s run with a 4-1 win Thursday. Vasishta Kalinadhabhatta and Dan Wang were straight set winners at second doubles for the Knights, who are 14-6.
   In Central Jersey Group III, Princeton High School lost 5-0 to top-seeded Holmdel on Thursday in the semifinals.
   Song is accustomed to his teams finding ways to win. He enjoyed two unbeaten seasons in middle school before joining the WW-P South squad this year as a freshman. The Pirates haven’t lost a match since he took the top rung of the ladder and pushed down everyone a notch.
   ”He means a ton to the team,” Giovacchini said. “I told the guys at the county tournament, you guys wouldn’t be in the positions you are in and wouldn’t be able to win four flights without him here. Everyone loves him. It’s been fun so far.”
   Song trailed Montgomery’s Mitchell Ren, 5-2, in the first set before starting to rally. He lost a tiebreaker in the first set, but won the next two sets, 6-2, to earn a point he wasn’t necessarily expecting for the team.
   ”It was pretty big,” Song said. “I played him in a tournament once and I lost to him in three sets.
   ”I thought I didn’t really need to win. I was kind of depending on others.”
   Dan Ng and Daniel Vaysburd were quick winners at first and second singles to set up the Pirates to avenge two straight seasons of state tournament losses to Montgomery.
   ”Really all three singles players played fantastic and that really put the pressure on Montgomery,” Giovacchini said. “We won second and third singles pretty quickly, but then they have to win all the other three and that’s not easy.”
   The Cougars captured their lone point at first doubles from Clark Chapman and Alessandro Sclapari in three sets. The Pirates’ second doubles team of John Hu and Peter Ku won in three sets.
   ”I feel that we’re solid at all five positions this year,” Giovacchini said. “That hasn’t been the case in the past few years. I feel we’re pretty solid at all five positions. There are a lot of good teams that are only solid at four or really solid at three. It takes pressure off everyone is you have a chance at all five positions. That being said, our doubles weren’t exactly stellar.
   ”Second doubles struggled early on. They were down, 2-5, in the first set and came back to win that set. They came back to make it somewhat close in the second set and still lost. They won the third set to win two of the three. I still wasn’t thrilled with the way doubles handled the occasion.”
   Giovacchini has been thrilled with the poise and play of Song. Song is in a tough spot for a freshman.
   ”A lot of other people that I’ve played,” Song said, “they’re a lot stronger than me and they have a lot more experience with high school tennis.”
   It’s been hard to tell. Song has lost to only two people all season and finished third at the Mercer County Tournament. His finest performance came against Ren, who looked to be in control early.
   ”After the first set, I changed my strategy and I just kept playing like I usually do,” Song said. “I moved him around and I didn’t go for too much.
   ”The first set, I was down 2-5, and I guess it wasn’t working for me. My coach told me to mix up the pace and I did a few variety shots and I got it to 6-5. But I lost the tiebreaker.”
   Song rallied to win the second and third sets in solid fashion, and he’ll need the confidence he gained for a big test ahead from Dylan Karchere-Sun. The South Brunswick freshman’s addition has also bolstered his team’s lineup by pushing everyone down a flight.
   ”Against Dylan, I have to keep things consistent and keep things deep,” Song said. “He has a really good forehand, and he has a good backhand too.”
   Song, too, has a good game, and now he has a good win in the state tournament to build on as he plays Karchere-Sun.
   ”It was a great win for Michael,” Giovacchini said. “I’ve always been really high on Mitchell Ren and he is a fantastic shot maker and a very, very dangerous player. Michael changed his tactics a bit against the kid and that may have frustrated him. I liked Michael’s chances the longer the match went. Mitchell never gave up. He really wanted to win that match, and there were some fantastic points. Michael was just a little better that day. That result could turn around easily on a different day. Michael was very impressive for a freshman.”
   Song had a sense of the talented team he was joining this year. He hit some with the high school players last year, and knew he could make an impact. It’s come at the toughest spot, the top of the lineup, for yet another unbeaten team.
   ”This is one of my favorite groups that I’ve ever coached,” Giovacchini said. “This has definitely been a fun group to coach. Michael has been a tremendous addition to the team.”