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Luigi Boselli came into the week undefeated in singles play for the Woodstock Academy boys’ tennis team
“I’m surprised,” Boselli said. “Coach (Ann) Rathbone, (Lauren) Gagnon and (Siana) Green have really guided me a lot. They have done a really good job with me.”
The group of coaches has done wonders with the boys’ program as a whole as the Centaurs are currently 6-1 after winning two of their three matches last week.
The Centaurs have been led by Boselli and junior captain David Fleck, both of whom sport 6-0 records in singles play.
Boselli may be a senior and is more than familiar with the game, but this is his first exposure to tennis American style.
Boselli is an exchange student from Perugia, Italy. He played tennis there for four years. But in Italy, he didn’t play for a high school.
“Here, I represent the school, In Perugia, you represent yourself. Here, we are a group. You don’t just win by yourself and if you lose, all the people lose. It’s a stronger feeling here. When you play, others cheer for you. It’s amazing. It’s just wonderful,” Boselli said.
Rathbone said Boselli recently expressed his desire of how he wants to play hard for the team, to be there for the other players.
So far, he has been, despite having to take time off from the game.
Boselli had not played tennis for the last two years before coming to Woodstock Academy.
He was involved in a motorcycle accident and broke his hand. His doctor, after an operation on the hand, told him to take a break from the game.
But when he decided to come to the U.S., he also decided he wanted to play again.
Rathbone, originally, had slated Boselli for doubles. Boselli tried it, but Rathbone quickly realized that he was a talented singles player and he has been the No. 4 singles for the Centaurs for the entire season.
“He’s pretty solid,” Rathbone said. “He has no weaknesses to attack. He’s solid on (both forehand and backhand shots). He’s mentally tough. He doesn’t relax or take points off. Some kids get sloppy or lazy. He doesn’t. I wish they were all like that.”
The Centaurs rolled to a win in their first match of the week, 6-1, over New London April 23.
Riley Douglas won, but struggled against Wesly Paulo in second singles. The sophomore eventually prevailed, 6-3,4-6,6-4 but it took three hours to finish.
The Centaurs suffered their first loss of the season, 4-3, to an undefeated Ellington team April 24.
Both Fleck and Boselli managed wins as did the first doubles team of Aidan Stewart and Stefan Chervenkova who are now 5-0 in matches this season.
“We have never beaten Ellington, but we almost pulled it off, it was a good match,” Rathbone said. The Centaurs finished off the week with a shutou t victory over St. Bernard School. Joe Zhou picked up his first singles victory in the win.
“We’re doing very well. We have good chemistry and people are stepping up like Joe did in singles,” Rathbone said.
Girls Win 1
While the boys’ tennis team was busy, the girls’ team had a pretty quiet week.
The Centaurs downed Suffield, 6-1, in their only match of the week to raise their mark to 4-1. Morgan Bassett, Hannah Darigan and Adeline Smith all captured their singles matches in straight sets.
Rachel Holden, who has been a singles player for the Centaurs, suffered an ankle injury which prompted some shifting in the doubles ranks. “(Holden) may start some playing doubles because she is always hurting her ankle in singles. So, doubles is still kind of up in the air. Rachel and Adeline can play doubles, Adeline started playing doubles with Caitlin, but she is a strong singles player for a freshman. I’m not sure how it will pan out. It’s a great luxury to have to be able to put people in different places,” Rathbone said.
Marc Allard
Sports Information Director
The Woodstock Academy
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