The VHS boys’ tennis season is winding down and was marked by improved play and match results.

The Pirates  finished a two-week stretch with a four-match winning streak highlighted by a tight win against powerhouse Charles Wright, the perennial league and state champion. In their final home match, the Pirates pulled out a close 3-2 win over the typically dominating team. Junior Josh Tillman had a win at number two singles, but the Pirates dropped their matches at first and second  doubles.  Senior Steen Jennings tied the match with a 10-8 win in a third set tiebreaker at number one singles. It was then left to the number three doubles matchup, where seniors Ben Stemer and Chris Beardsley fell behind in a third set tiebreaker, but rallied to pull out an 11-9 win that sealed the match.

The win against Charles Wright capped a nice stretch, where the Pirates went 4-1 and 4-0 in league play, raising their record to 5-2 and 4-1 in the league, good enough for a share of the league lead.

While tennis can be an inherently individual game, Coach Pat Mulvihill said this team’s success comes from its depth, full team effort and support of one another.

The team will play away games this week against Charles Wright and Bush and then gets ready for the Nisqually league tournament at Charles Wright.  The top two singles players and doubles teams will move on from the Nisqually tournament to play in the district tournament the following week. Top finishers in that tournament will qualify for the state tournament in the spring. These longer one-day tournaments are always unpredictable, Mulvihill said, but regardless of the outcome,  this team has had a great season in terms of improvement, results and having fun.