Rallying for the postseason

Harwood tennis teams building momentum

Harwood Union High School’s tennis teams continue to rebound this year and hope to keep their momentum rolling into the playoffs as they eye the state championships.

The seedings for the individual tournaments are set to be announced today, Thursday, along with preliminary matches for team play beginning Monday.

In the Vermont Principals’ Association rankings, the Harwood boys’ team is ranked number four behind BFA-St. Albans, South Burlington and the top-ranked Burr and Burton.

The fifth-ranked Harwood girls’ tennis team is also solid this year, and coach Seth Mikle was planning on a strong finish to the regular season against BFA-St. Albans at home Wednesday.

“We expect a relatively high seed in the tournament, and hoping to improve upon last year’s first-round 4-3 loss to Woodstock, a match which could have gone either way,” Mikle said.

Both the boys’ and girls’ tennis teams have depth this season, which hasn’t always been the case. In some years, Harwood was forced to default match points because it could not field a full roster.

Boys’ team

“This is one of the biggest and one of the best teams I’ve seen at Harwood,” said boys’ varsity coach Josh Hanna. Eighteen kids tried out for the boys’ team; it only takes nine to field a team.

The boys have a strong freshman class and are starting to come together as a group. “We’re now playing as a team,” Hanna said.

The team’s top singles player, senior Conner Barker, is undefeated. French foreign exchange student Thibault Pelhate holds the second spot. He’s only lost one match.

Hanna said Pelhate’s style of play forces his opponents to feel more pressure when he charges the net.

Harwood’s number one doubles team features junior Henry Hermanowski and Polish exchange student Wojciech Wyszomirski. The tall duo is undefeated since pairing up.

“They have been doing awesome together. Their styles complement each other and they get along great,” said Hanna.

The players are looking forward to facing teams in the playoffs they don’t normally play in the regular season. “It’s all one division in boys’ tennis, and there’s a lot of good competition in Chittenden County,” Hanna said.

The boys’ team beat U-32 Monday to improve its record to 8-2 heading into Wednesday’s game against BFA-St. Albans.

Girls’ team

The two perceived powerhouses in Division 2 girls’ tennis are Montpelier and Burr and Burton.

Harwood varsity coach Mikle said, hopefully, his team is building up to play against one of those schools. The team is stronger than last year, and veteran players are eager for the playoffs.

A hoped-for match-up against Montpelier would put Harwood junior Chase Fortier against the Solons’ number two player Caitlyn Bashara.

Hopefully, the third try is the charm for Fortier, as she lost to Bashara twice this season. “I feel if I try really hard I can beat her,” Fortier said.

The team has more depth this year and has become a close-knit group, with captains helping keep the crew together.

Harwood senior Ally Behn believes the team is poised for a good playoff run.

“Chase and I are very consistent and we’ve not lost very many matches,” she said.

She also noted that the number one doubles team of Mia Burfoot and Maddie McGeorge has been doing very well this season.

The Harwood girls’ tennis team has had a busy final week, beating U-32 on Monday and North Country Tuesday before heading into their final game against BFA-St. Albans Wednesday. Their record heading into that game was 7-4.