Scarlet Hawks on pace for best win total in years

By Chris Villani

Luck has not been on the side of the Milford High boys’ tennis team so far this year, but that has not stopped the Scarlet Hawks from picking up a couple of early victories and setting themselves up for their most successful year in recent memory.

“With a little bit of luck, we could be better on the record side of things, but we have been playing well,” said head coach Shawn Austin.

Austin was referring to an injury suffered by senior captain Connor Wong in a match against Attleboro where he seemed well on his way to victory. Milford ended up losing a close one, but Wong has been working his way back by playing first doubles and continues to be a key contributor.

Senior Corey Rattray is at the top singles spot for Milford and Austin praised him for his talent and consistency. 

Another senior captain, Sean Previlege, has been a mainstay in one of MHS’ singles spots. But the Hawks are also getting contributions from their doubles teams. Senior Todd Ostertog is a first-team doubles player who has had success this spring.

Junior captain Drew Cahill is a versatile player who has been a strong pairing with both Ostertog and Wong.

“Drew has been a great partner working with Todd and Connor, Drew has been great as the anchor for first doubles,” Austin said. “And Todd is a great two-way player. He can play both doubles and singles really well.”

At second doubles, Milford has relied on seniors Luke Fabry and Lokesh Addagiri. While doubles has been a challenge for MHS in the past, this year, it has been an area of strength. Austin credits the veteran lineup for helping the team improve its depth and thinking about getting to the state tournament.

“We have seven seniors, and we have never been to the playoffs, so that is what we are going for,” the coach said. “Even if we barely get in and only play one round, we’d love to make the playoffs.”

In order to make that goal a reality, Austin said his team needs to keep an aggressive mindset and learn to play to win, rather than simply not to lose. It’s something the team has been developing over the past few years, as many of his current standouts came into the program having not played much, or any, competitive tennis.

“They have the tools now, and they want to use those to play aggressively and maximize our strengths,” Austin said. “That’s the theme: take the opportunity when you have it. Don’t worry about missing shots, just make sure you take the right shot.”