Bonac Boys Tennis Bounces Back From First Loss With Win Over William Floyd

East Hampton sophomore Nick Cooper said he wasn’t worried following his previously perfect boys tennis team’s 4-3 loss to still undefeated Ward Melville last Thursday, May 5.

He was right, as the Bonackers — 13-1 as of Tuesday morning, May 10 — bounced back to sweep William Floyd, 7-0, at home on Monday.

“I know some of us are a little down about our loss last week, but I’m confident that we can win the rest of our matches this season,” Cooper said. “The winning is great for team morale, and every one of us is really dedicated to the team, so I feel confident that our team will do well for the rest of the season, and I’m excited to see how we’ll do in the playoffs.”

Cooper was the last Bonacker to win his match on May 5, pulling away with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Ethan Timm at No. 4 singles. The East Hampton sophomore, who typically finds himself in the No. 1 or No. 2 slot, has been working his way back into the lineup following a groin injury suffered in the first contest of the season. He said it’s felt nice returning to the team.

“Although I’m still not 100 percent after my injury, it’s great to get a win and help the team out,” Cooper said. “I think coach Kevin [McConville]’s advice to take it easy and just play smart was really helpful, because I focused on finding my opponent’s weakness and this helped me pull away.”

The sophomore said he noticed his challenger had a strong serve and some more powerful shots but was inconsistent. “I knew I just had to keep the ball in play,” Cooper said.

East Hampton eighth-graders Jagger Cohen and Henry Cooper, and junior Armando Rangel and sophomore Miguel Garcia all won in straight sets at second and third doubles, respectively.

McConville said he liked how his boys responded, especially Cohen and Cooper, who had been playing on the singles side all season. “They responded, and played great,” the coach said. “I couldn’t be happier with their effort.”

McConville said he and Ward Melville head coach Erick Sussin both made major adjustments to their rosters.

“With such talented groups, we’ve both been mixing up our lineups a lot this season,” he said. “But that’s a really good team that beat us.”

Pierson sophomore Chris Pilarski, who has been out since the first match of the season rehabbing a shoulder injury, returned to play No. 1 doubles with Ross School transfer Kiefer Mitchell. The pair lost in three sets, winning the first, and falling, 6-4, in the third. Pilarski was sore after his match and will be sidelined until needed for the team playoffs.

Pierson freshman Dane Schwalb also came close to clinching it for the Bonackers, dropping his third set, 6-4, too. McConville said his young athlete put forth a strong showing. East Hampton junior Max Astilean agreed.

“I was proud of Dane,” Astilean said. “He really upped his game. I also really liked our first doubles team’s game — they fought till the end, never gave up.”

Astilean also thought his opponent leveled up. The junior was challenged by Aron Bursztyn, who beat him, 6-1, 6-4, and had eliminated him in the quarterfinals of the Suffolk County individual championships last season.

“The day of the match was complete butterflies, but as soon as the match started, those went away,” Astilean said. “I thought I could’ve been more competitive in the first set, as I made too many unforced errors, but in the second set I felt like I played great, and it was a real battle in the second with points going back and forth.”

McConville said he thinks things could be different if the boys see each other again.

“Max played great — he played fantastic tennis — he just didn’t serve well, and that’s a big deal,” the coach said. “He’s been strong serving, and we’ve been working on target practice a lot — he put the time in, and he was really ready — but his toss was a little off with the wind gusting. That makes a big difference.

“Aron is also an excellent player,” McConville added. “They both got so much better. It couldn’t be more evident.”

Cooper added he’s seen improvements in his teammates across the board.

“I feel like our team has really developed throughout this year,” the sophomore said. “We started with a lot of new players this season, and I didn’t know many of them, but now as we have gotten to know each other, it helps us to know strengths and weaknesses to make us a better team.”

McConville said he believes the match was a huge wake-up call to other teams. Many utilize the Universal Tennis Rating database, which just included high school rankings to its application this year, to see players’ results not just at the school level but in competitions outside of Suffolk County. It also shows opponents’ rankings.

The coach said the kids are engrossed in statistics these days.

“I think we surprised them a little bit, because when they look at our level, we don’t look nearly as good as we are, looking at it on paper,” McConville said. “Their team is really good — besides Commack they look like the best team to me, with everyone boasting high UTR ratings. But we’re looking forward to seeing them again.”