Mustangs gearing up for county tennis tourney

Brick Memorial tennis coach Don MacCarrick feels his team is getting ready for the Ocean County Tournament that will be held next weekend at Bey Lea Park in Toms River.

"We are getting better," said MacCarrick, whose team, which comes into this week with an 8-4 record, finished in a tie for fourth place in the county tournament last year, its best finish ever. Brick Memorial was 12-7 last year as it made the NJSIAA and Shore Conference tournaments for the fourth straight year.

MacCarrick felt heartened watching his team in the Shore Conference Tournament as it beat Howell, 4-1, in the opening round and then lost to perennial power Marlboro, 3-2, which MacCarrick calls a "moral victory." Marlboro pulled out the victory by sweeping both sets in tie breakers in second singles. Colin Przybylowski in first singles and Mike Heard and Kyle White in second doubles, all of them seniors, got the points.

"Mike Heard did not play last year and he's a great athlete and a better team player than he was in his sophomore year," said MacCarrick. "He knows how to win and to be mentally tough."

Ryan Coyle also has contributed in a part-time role in second doubles.

Przybylowski, who is 9-3, is preparing for the NJSIAA singles tournament that will be played on June 2 at Mercer County Park. He was 15-7 last year and finished fourth in the county tournament.

Nick Cittadino is 10-2 in second singles, while Chris Pimentel, a junior, is 5-7 in third singles and is looking to string a couple of victories, or more, in the state singles tournament. While Cittadino is on target to surpass last year's 15-6 record, Pimentel wants to turn things around after going 15-7 last year.

"He has a lot of good skills and talent, and he has to put it all together," said MacCarrick of Pimentel. "Sometimes he plays down to a kid who is not as skilled as him, although I have seen him make some improvement."

Dan Yarborough, a junior, and Mike McGowan, a senior, are 6-6 in first doubles and earned praise from MacCarrick, along with second singles player Cittadino, as both positions gritted out three-set victories against unbeaten Toms River East in its 3-2 victory recently. Toms River East beat Brick Memorial, 5-0, earlier in the season.

"I'm really encouraged because we had lost the match, falling behind, 3-0," said MacCarrick. "This shows me that the guys, even when they fell behind 3-0, did not give up and kept battling hard.

"People have to be concerned and can't take us lightly anymore," he said. "With five seniors and two juniors, we're really experienced. We have good athletes but for some, this is not the main sport. But they're mentally tough and have a great time. We want to win, but I don't put too much pressure on them."

There will be a sense of urgency for the Mustangs to perform well in the upcoming Ocean County Tournament with five of them graduating from this year's team and their desire to crack the Top 3 finishes in the team standings.

And for MacCarrick, it means a lot of rebuilding for next season.

- Wayne Witkowski