CHS boys tennis team keeps rolling with 4th shutout win

By Jay Turner

Senior Eli Weaver continued his dominance at No. 3 singles with his fifth double bagel of the season, and all of Canton’s starters won in straight sets as the CHS boys tennis team rolled to their sixth win of the spring with another 5-0 showing in their latest match against Taunton.

CHS senior Eli Weaver improved to 7-0 on the season with his latest match victory. (Mike Tureski photo)

The Bulldogs have now won four matches in shutout fashion and continue to maintain a slim lead in the Hockomock Davenport Division standings ahead of Mansfield, who they have yet to face.

Last season, the Canton boys finished two wins behind the Hornets in the division title chase, but they appear to have a great shot to get over the hump this spring behind a trio of impressive seniors anchoring the singles positions.

“Our top three singles players are neck and neck with each other,” noted head coach Bill Donovan. “I knew we would have a solid year because those guys are so experienced and so dedicated. They’ve worked really hard since last year and they’re just so driven.”

In last Wednesday’s match against Taunton, all three of them cruised to easy wins, with Bharat Ramanathan only dropping one set at first singles (6-0, 6-1) and Matt Wright rolling 6-2, 6-2 at second singles to go along with Weaver’s 6,0, 6-0 result at third singles.

In the doubles matches, the top pairing of sophomore Luke Erickson and junior Spencer Reich also made quick work of their opponent to improve to 5-1 as a duo this season, while the second doubles team of seniors Aiden McCloskey and Alvis Huang also prevailed 7-5, 6-0 to run their record to 4-2.

Weaver and Wright are still perfect on the season (7-0), and Ramanathan is a very impressive 5-2 despite going up against each opponent’s strongest player.

While Donovan is very impressed with what the team has shown to date, he was also quick to point out that it’s still early in the season. “I think we’ve done well for the first seven matches,” he told HockomockSports.com. “But we still have Mansfield, Franklin and King Philip in the coming weeks, and those will be tough matches.”

In addition to competing for the division title, Donovan said the team has set several other goals for itself this year, including qualifying for and advancing in the state playoffs. “We definitely want to win the first round for a change and we want to go deeper,” he said.

Currently off for April vacation, the team will be back in action on Monday with an away match against Stoughton.

They will then head to Franklin next Wednesday, April 29, followed by another road match against the defending Davenport champs from Mansfield on May 4.

Share This Post

Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=133885