Boys' Tennis Team Ready For States

It's been quite a successful year for the Cranford boys' varsity tennis team.

The Cougars, who own an impressive 8-4 record, will play host to Morristown Wednesday in a first round state tournament matchup, riding a wave of confidence into their first state tournament appearance in four years.

The Cougars have been the talk of the courts because of their youth, with just one senior on their roster.

"For us to get this far this year has been remarkable," said head coach Richard Goldstein. "They go out there and give a 110 percent effort every day. We were hoping to get a .500 record this year and we're above that right now. Being the first year varsity coach of this team makes me very proud."

Captain and second doubles star Derek DeCagna has done a great job from a leadership standpoint and is very proud of how this talented squad has squeezed out all its potential to reach this point.

"Coming into the season, I knew states' was a goal I definitely wanted to reach," DeCagna said. "I wasn't sure if we could make it or not, but I'm definitely happy we did. And we have the capability to at least go to the second round of the states. That would really be great."

DeCagna has been teaming with freshman Danny Buono at second doubles.

A big part of their success has been another freshman, Christian Woo, who has excelled at third singles. He captured another straight-set victory when the Cougars lost a close 3-2 match to Old Bridge on Tuesday, but that hasn't put a damper on what lies ahead.

"I really think we have a chance this year," said Woo. "I've heard this is the best we've done so far. I feel absolutely great knowing that our team is doing extraordinarily well. It's just really great to be a part of this."

Even the Cougars losses have been close, with their last two matches both 3-2 scores.

"I just think it makes us want to push this one step further," said Goldstein. "By having these two losses, it makes us refocus a little bit and push forward even that much more."

"This is my fourth year with the team, and this is one of the greatest years that I've seen them play, together as a team, with the friendships that they've made, the performance that they put forward, their athletic ability, it's been second to none," Goldstein noted. "This is the first year in four years that they've made it to states as a team. And especially for Derek, as a senior, it's a great opportunity."

Meanwhile, Alex Heucke and Andrew Miller have been battling the best foes their opponents have to offer at first and second singles respectively. For Miller, it's been a season that he'd like to see continue for a little while longer.

"It's incredible that we've come so far," said Miller, who's just a sophomore. "We have a really young team and we were looking at .500 as a goal, and this is definitely surpassing that. It's been a great experience. No matter what, we've had a great season. We hope to put up a good showing in states."

The Cranford-Morristown matchup is set for Thursday afternoon at 4:00.