Boys Tennis (1–1) began its season with an opening 0–7 loss to defending NEPSAC champions Brunswick on Saturday. The team bounced back from the loss on Wednesday, emerging victorious BB&N on Wednesday in a final score of 5–2.
Last season, the team reached the finals of the NEPSAC Class A Championships, ultimately falling to Brunswick. With five new athletes on the Varsity A squad that competed against Brunswick on Saturday, Co-Captain Jeff Shen ’26 elaborated on the atmosphere of both nervousness and eagerness before matches commenced.
“In the locker room, we were quite excited. Obviously, Brunswick is a really strong team, the reigning NEPSAC [Class A] champion. It takes a lot of nerves [to compete against them]. It is expected, given that we have five new players on the roster, which is unprecedented for a small team, [that] there were some jitters, but overall, a lot of excitement. Some of the new guys are moving up from Varsity B, and many of them are in their first year at Andover… Going into the Brunswick game… we had a lot of parents there as well, so it was super cool,” said Shen.
Regardless of the team’s final result on Saturday, the matches provided the team answers about what they should focus on moving forward in the season. According to George Richardson ’27, who competes seeded third on the team, performance in doubles can be bettered before the next match on Wednesday, with improvements specifically stemming from closer connections among doubles partners.
“As a team, we need to get better at doubles. We are all really new to each other, granted that we lost four Seniors from last year. The doubles aspect in really getting to know our partners better is going to be a tough obstacle to overcome. We are a well-equipped team. We have a lot of resources at our disposal. We have a great [Head] Coach[, Leon Calleja,] and a great support system, so we can do that. It’s just getting to know each other more and more over time,” said Richardson.
Shen added that Brunswick’s level of play, notably with heavy serves and strong fitness, and depth of its roster made it difficult for Andover to prevail in their matches.
“Brunswick has a lot of depth in their lineup. They have players who will go out there and bomb serves, and not be tired after you run them out. It was hard to keep up with their experience. Brunswick always has a very old roster and a lot of seniors on the team, and the experience really showed. They can adapt to different situations, they can meet challenges head on, and they can really ride with momentum,” said Shen.
Against BB&N, victories in singles came from five athletes: second seed and Co-Captain Ben Shin ’26, who won 6–1, 6–1; third seed George Richardson ’27, who won in 6–3, 7–5; Tomas Tejapaibul ’27, who won in 6–0, 6–1; and Sean Liu ’28, who won in an abbreviated match in 6–4. In the team’s fifth victory against BB&N, Shin and Shen won their doubles match 8–4.
Throughout its matches in its victory against BB&N, Boys Tennis emphasized team spirit by constantly cheering and encouraging one another, whether it be on or off the court. Liu, a player new to the Varsity A team, highlighted the differences in team motivation compared to Saturday.
“We supported each other a lot more than last Saturday. That is a big part of the team aspect of tennis, so we were always cheering on our teammates even while we were playing. When we saw the person on the next court over hit a nice shot, we would cheer for them. When we were not playing, we would be watching matches and cheering our teammates on,” said Liu.
Liu continued, “The biggest lesson is supporting your teammates. Tennis is an individual sport, but when we are playing as a team, we must carry each other on from the sidelines. When our teammates are down and they are losing points, we can still keep their spirits up and keep the intensity.”
Boys Tennis will battle Nobles this Thursday.
