Boys' Tennis Improves to 17-1 After Beating Hopatcong

The Chatham boys' tennis team improved to an impressive 17–1 Thursday after defeating Hopatcong 5-0.

This latest dominating performance was no surprise to the Cougars who have their sights set on coming out victorious in the Newark Academy Tournament this weekend.

"In every match we try to improve our skills," said Chatham Coach Bruce Humphreys. "We have to bring our A-game [this weekend], there's no other way. There's not going to be any mental break."

Chatham's Andrew Coppola took part in singles action, winning 6-2, 6-3 against Hopatcong's Sanjeev Bawa. Alec Weber came out victorious against AJ Fasano, 6-4, 6-3 and Matt Evans won 6-2, 6-2 versus Matt Guglielmello.

In first doubles, Chatham's Chad Gildersleeve and Chris Harvey downed Hopatcong's Josh Mereles and Vinny Marinoni, 6-1, 6-1. In second doubles, Chatham's Erik Pump and James Bresnahan defeated Corey Tuttle and Dan VanVlet, 6-3, 6-2.

Hopatcong Coach Traci Duffy, whose team fell to 0-9, was asked what she wanted her team to take away from its performance Thursday.

"[I want them to be more] consistent in returning the ball," she said. "That is it."

Humphreys, said his focus for the day was "hitting the ball well, footwork and court coverage. He also said he wanted to keep his team fresh for the tournament.