Port Washington Caps Off Undefeated Season With LI Championship

November 8, 2019 | By Brian Coleman
Andrea Martinez

 

The dominance of Port Washington continued on Tuesday The Hamlet Golf & Country Club in Commack, as the girls won for the 50th time in its last 51 matches, defeating Westhampton Beach 7-0 to capture the Long Island Championship.

“What makes this even more special is that we just won [the Long Island championship] with the boys team in the spring,” said head coach Shane Helfner. “So to sweep the calendar year, I’m very proud of both of our programs for being on top right now. I’m just really, really happy for everyone involved in our tennis program.”

Click Here to see more photos from the 2019 Girls’ Long Island Championship

On center court at the Hamlet, Port Washington’s Thea Rabman and Westhampton Beach’s Rose Hayes squared off in the first singles match, in a battle of two of the top singles players on Long Island and who competed at the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Championships just last weekend.

Rabman would get the best of Hayes, winning a tight two-setter 7-5, 6-4.

Thea Rabman, who reached the state singles final earlier in the week, won at first singles in the Long Island Championship

“I tried to step in on her balls and use variety, and try to take her consistency away from her,” said Rabman. “We’ve put so much effort in as a team this whole season. We’re really tired, especially the girls that went to states, but we’re always ready to play for our team.”

As has been the strength of the Vikings team throughout the year, its doubles teams came up clutch once again. The match was played with Suffolk County rules, meaning four singles matches and three doubles matches, and Port Washington got its first three points of the day on the doubles courts, getting wins from Charlotte Forman & Dasha Perfiliev at first doubles, Casey Fanous & Samantha Radinsky at second doubles, and Kayla Hill and Misha Petrov at third doubles, to build a commanding early lead.

The clinching match would come from second singles, as Andrea Martinez defeated Katelyn Stabile 6-3, 6-1.

“I didn’t even know that my match was the one that clinched it,” Martinez said. “I just really wanted to get the point for my team. This has just been such a fun experience.”

Ellie Ross would defeat Rose Peruso 6-3, 6-1 at third singles, and Katie Kors notched a 7-5, 0-6, 10-4 win at fourth singles to round out Port Washington’s sweep.

“We have such a unique roster in that we have five girls who are freshmen or younger, and six girls who are seniors who have been taught what we expect each year,” said Helfner. “There is a great balance of veteran leadership and these young tournament players who can come right in and fill our lineup.”

The match was originally scheduled for last week, but multiple days of rain delayed it for a week before it could be played, before finally being completed on Tuesday afternoon.

“It was tough and mentally exhausting for everyone involved,” Helfner added. “This was definitely unique. In all my years of coaching I don’t think I’ve ever had to wait almost two weeks to play a match. But I’m just happy we were able to get it in today and the girls came through.”

 

 


Brian Coleman
Senior Editor, Long Island Tennis Magazine
Brian Coleman is the Senior Editor for Long Island Tennis Magazine. He may be reached at brianc@usptennis.com.
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