Shawano boys tennis team looking to few upperclassmen to lead otherwise young roster

The last time the Shawano Community High School boys tennis team was in action in 2019, the roster was headlined by upperclassmen.

After missing all of 2020, the Hawks now head into the spring season with plenty of lineup spots up for grabs.

“I am not sure how we are going to perform this year,” said Shawano coach Matt Zoll. “With many limitations on gathering in the summer and the challenges for preparing in the offseason, it is difficult to predict how we will fare. We have great kids that come out for tennis, and we are going to work hard to be able to compete.”

Seniors Rory Johnson and Nolan Buck competed as doubles partners in 2019, ending the year competing at subsectionals as the No. 3 doubles team.

Junior Leo Liu also got some varsity experience in 2019 as a singles player.

At the 2019 Bay Conference Tournament, Johnson and Buck teamed up for a third-place finish at No. 3 doubles, while Liu came in third as a No. 3 singles player.

The trio of returners will now do their best to lead the rest of the team.

“I would say that we all need to work together to catch up on our skills and just try to see what we can work on as a team and individually,” said Johnson. “It all starts with us seniors, especially the ones who were able to play some varsity their sophomore year, to make sure our other teammates can get on the courts as much as possible and work with us upperclassmen to get a real feel for what they can expect this season and what they can learn and try to get better at. I think the best I can do is try to get everyone to just simply get out and play as much as possible and focus on the basics, and the rest will come with time and practice.”

“Personally, I started playing tennis when I was a freshman,” said Buck. “I know how it feels to just start out. So now that I am a senior and have to lead a team, I think it be a great challenge to lead the two new classes of tennis athletes. I think that my experience in the summer and my senior friends can help lead these inexperienced classes and hopefully can assist the coaches in teaching the underclassmen.”

sports@newmedia-wi.com