girls tennis Coach Bob Slotoroff is pretty clear about his goals for the season.
“As a team, the goal is to win the league,” Slotoroff said. “Individually, I would like to see our players show improvement in October from what they were in August. If our players can do that, we should be in good shape.”
, the Panthers first singles player, won the league last year on an individual basis as an eighth grader.
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“She is very athletic,” Slotoroff said. “She is very determined. She gets to every shot. She doesn’t give up.”
Posa, like Slotoroff, also said her goal for the team is to win a league title. She said the key for her and her teammates is just to be consistent.
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“Sometimes we try too hard and try to hit it through the net,” Posa said. “Our coach tells us instead to wait until you have a good opportunity to win a shot. He also always tells us to get our serve in, don’t lose points to double faulting.”
Rotating between second singles and third singles are senior captain Jackie Marra and junior Eden Igielski.
Both players feed off each other as both are competitive and determined not to give up any points to the opposition.
“They are each solid players who are not afraid to come to the net,” Slotoroff said. “Both of them play the whole game. They play back and play up.”
As a captain, Marra is a role model for the Panthers this season.
“She plays tennis outside of the high-school season,” Slotoroff said. “She also has run a program for little kids as part of her gold award for girl scouts.”
Posa said what makes Marra an outstanding captain is her genuine concern for each member of the team.
“She sets a good example for everybody to follow,” Posa said. “She gets everyone into it. She motivates everyone. She watches everyone play and cheers them on. She is really nice and is very supportive. She always gets us going in practice.”
Slotoroff said the team's doubles situation is still evolving, but right now, the first duo is made up of freshman Courtney Sheehy and junior Nancy DelMastro.
“Courtney is very athletic,” Slotoroff said. “She has good tennis skills and is very aggressive at the net.”
DelMastro brings plenty of height to the court and is very composed at the net, according to her coach.
Pleasantville’s second doubles consists of sophomore Sasha Dolgetta and eighth grader Lizzie Gellman.
“They are both good kids who are good, solid tennis players who don’t make too many mistakes,” Slotoroff said.
Playing third doubles for Pleasantville are juniors Carly Ruth and Allison Longo. Both have played together for a couple of years now and that experience should pay dividends this year.
Playing fourth doubles for Pleasantville are seniors Katie Connolly and Rebecca Moore, who are welcome additions as newcomers to the team.
Pleasantville, 2-1 so far this year, split its first two matches of the season, losing to host Hastings 5-2 on Sept. 12, before beating visiting Valhalla 5-0 on Sept. 14.
It then got over the .500 mark with a 4-1 win at Ossining on Sept. 16.
The Panthers host Hastings today at 4:30 p.m.
