Steinert slams Bucs in CJ III opener
HAMILTON — Bob Howland already knew he had a good girls tennis team at Steinert this year.
When the Spartans topped Red Bank, 4-1, Thursday in the opening round of the Central Jersey Group III girls’ tennis tournament, it confirmed further what the coach already knew.
“I think this was a statement match for us,” said Howland, whose team is the No. 4 seed in CJ III. “I think it says that we deserved the seed that we got and that we’re playing good tennis.”
Steinert picked up straight set wins from Gaby Bennett at first singles and Rachel Peters at second singles, as well as a sweep of the doubles to dispose of Red Bank in the opening round. With the win, the Spartans improved to 8-2 on the season.
“I am really excited that we can move forward,” said Peters, who topped Lauren Fernandez, 6-0, 6-0 in her match. “I know that this is the highest seed that we have had in at least 10 years at Steinert and that is really exciting. We have a strong team so if we just all focus and play with confidence I think we can get really far.
“We do have strong players at every single position.”
The Spartans swept the doubles in straight sets, as Michelle Petrilla and Amanda Phillips won at first doubles and Paige Conti and Danielle Swierczyna won at second doubles. Kristen Malpas went three sets at third singles before dropping her match.
Peters, a senior, has been playing tennis her whole life and is thrilled to be part of such a successful Steinert team. And the team success means as much or more to her than any individual success.
“My dad plays tennis so I have been playing since I was younger,” said Peters, who improved to 8-2 this year. “The individual wins amount to the team win so we try to support each other. I think sitting there and cheering each other on really helps.
“We’re 8-2 and that is fantastic. I knew after tryouts were over that we had a pretty decent lineup and this could be a good season for us.”
As the fourth seed in CJ III the Spartans will play another home match on Tuesday, hosting fifth-seeded Hopewell Valley, which defeated Lawrence, 3-2, on Thursday.
“To start off like this has been great,” Howland said. “I had high expectations for this team. I knew we had a strong lineup. You never know how the season is going to play out and right now the season is playing out well. Now it is a matter of can we sustain it. I’d like to cap the season with a deep run in the state tournament.
“We count on everybody and everybody has a winning record.”
The deep lineup has led to the Spartans most successful season in Howland’s 10 years as head The results have not surprised him and the opening round start tournament win validated how he already felt about his team.
coach.