The Southmont boys’ tennis team gears up for an intense season as the varsity squad grows a year older. From last year’s lineup of four sophomores and three juniors, coach Nathan Poynter hopes to gain an advantage from the team’s maturation.
“We went from being an extremely experienced team to very inexperienced last year,” Poynter said. “We’re going to have about the same group of kids playing this year as we did last year, [which is] better, just being a year older and having another year’s worth of playing.”
Challenge matches in the following week will determine the varsity lineup, and junior Gavin Downey stands out as last season’s number one singles player. The team is brimming with goals as seniors Caden Allen, Alex Garcia and Mikey Harden round off their high school tennis careers. Poynter hopes that the players’ commitment will pay off in the coming season.
“We’ve had a few people work in the off season who may make a difference this year,” Poynter said.
Time will tell whether the team’s combined experience and effort will carry them on the court throughout the season.
