The Valley boys’ tennis team entered last week with a record of 4-5, but after winning three of their four contests, the Warriors now stand on the plus side of the ledger at 7-6 and are just one win away from clinching a spot in states. Due to rainouts, Valley hit the court for four-straight days and played solid tennis to defeat Cromwell, Morgan, and Haddam-Killingworth before losing to powerhouse Old Saybrook.

“It could have been a huge grind on the player’s legs and arms with four games in four days, but some schools don’t have enough kids to field a full team, like H-K, who only has four players, so we got some rest,” Head Coach Bunny Logan said. “Because of that easy match, it was a more normal week for us.”

The week began at Cromwell on May 9 and the Warriors won a tight contest by the final of 4-3. Sophomore No. 1 singles player Jeff Riggio got things started in the right direction by earning a hard-fought 7-5, 7-5 victory over Brandon Hewitt. The next three singles matches didn’t go according to plan as Valley’s No. 2, 3, and 4 singles players all lost in straight sets. However, Jack Lima, who made the switch to singles play at the No. 5 position, came up big with a 6-1, 6-3 win versus Ermin Behremovic.

The Warriors needed to sweep doubles play to win the match and that was exactly what they did. The No. 1 squad of Kevin Baldwin and Jack Leggett topped David Dawidowski and Micko Millares 6-4, 6-4 to set up the decisive bout for No. 2 tandem of seniors Alex Tezzi and Sam Armenia. The duo delivered in quick fashion by scoring a 6-2, 6-2 victory to give Valley the 4-3 win.

“It was a ‘wow’ match for Jeff Riggio today. [It] can’t get much closer than Jeff’s two sets. He had to find a way to win points. Each opponent has different strengths and weaknesses and Jeff had to figure it out for the win,” said Coach Logan. “Jack Lima tried his hand in singles today and played well for the win. Our doubles teams were on today and both won handily.”

The next day, Valley went back on the road to face Morgan and dispatched the Huskies 6-1, while winning all six matches in straight sets. Riggio got the win in a rematch with Tejas Patel, who had beaten him earlier in the season, with a 6-3, 6-4 victory. No. 2 Jason Simoneau took care of Mike Murray 6-3, 6-1; Ben Kilby competed in at the No. 4 spot and outlasted Austin Remetta 7-5, 6-1; and Baldwin showed his versatility by moving to singles and getting a 6-3, 7-5 decision. In doubles play, Valley won both matches as Lima returned to team up with Liggett for a 6-2, 6-2 victory, while and Tezzi and Armenia netted a 6-4, 6-1 triumph over Paddy Murray and Drew Marzano.

“This was the match of the week!” Logan exclaimed. “Jeff lost a close one against Morgan’s No. 1 the last time they played, [but] came out on top of his game this time. Jeff played a great match and stayed focused throughout for the win. Jason, Ben, and Kevin all had close, tough matches and played hard and smart for their victories. It’s fun when teams are closely matched. This was a great one.”

Playing its third match in three days on May 11, Valley returned to Deep River to face a short-handed Haddam-Killingworth squad that came with only four players. It didn’t matter as the Warriors won all four matches and took the other three via forfeits for the 7-0 victory. Riggio won easily, 6-0, 6-1; Simoneau defeated Ben McLaughlin 6-3, 6-1; Hal Jones went for a 6-2, 6-3 win over Ben Blair; and Baldwin blanked Andrew Santopietro 6-0, 6-0.

To end the week, Valley hit the road again and lost to a 14-1 Old Saybrook squad by a 7-0 score on May 12. Although the Warriors were shut out, they still played come competitive matches. Riggio lost in three sets to Saba Cecunjanin. After taking the first 6-3, Riggio dropped the next two 3-6, 0-6. Meanwhile, Hal Jones fought hard in his 6-3, 6-4 defeat. On the doubles court, Tezzi and Armenia lost the first set 6-0, but didn’t give up and fought back in the second before taking a 6-7 (6-8) loss.

“Jeff gave it all he had in the first two sets. It seems he ran out of gas or Saba got better in the third set,” Logan said. “Even though they lost, Jason and Hal played to the best of their abilities and stayed very competitive throughout their matches. Some of our matches were quite close, but we couldn’t pull it out against a very talented team.”

From the Sidelines

Bunny Logan is in her 12th season as head coach for Valley Regional boys’ tennis and has been coaching the sport in the area for 34 years. She coached at North Branford for 17 seasons and was at Branford for five. Logan was also named the Shoreline Conference Coach of the Year in 2012-’13 season.

The Warriors’ captains this spring are seniors Jason Simoneau and Alex Tezzi.

Valley’s seven wins have come against Cromwell (5-2 and 4-3), Haddam-Killingworth (7-0 and 7-0), Portland (7-0), Coginchaug (6-1), and Morgan (6-1).