In Wilkes-Barre, Scranton Prep entered the District 2 Class 2A boys tennis team title match as the lower seed against Wyoming Seminary — but they didn't seem like they were at a disadvantage.
The Cavaliers beat top-seeded Sem with a sweeping 3-0 victory at Kirby Park, earning the program's first District 2 title since 2016 in an impressive manner.
“I’m very proud of how the team conducted themselves, they were prepared to play,” said Scranton Prep coach Nick Gregory after his team received the championship plaque and gold medals.
“Sem is a great team with a great program. …I am proud of my guys.”
On Friday, Scranton Prep eliminated both of the remaining Wyoming Valley Conference teams, first defeating third-seed Dallas in a semifinal sweep, ensuring that a new district champion would be named after three years of Dallas holding the team title.
Wyoming Seminary had a strong victory in their semifinal match, easily defeating Holy Cross in a 3-0 sweep, bringing their record to 13-0 for the year before heading into the championship.
Scranton Prep, with just one loss, was ready to hand Sem their first loss. The first two wins of the match came from Akhilesh Velaga at No. 2 singles and the No. 2 doubles team of David Geyfman and Jackson Keating.
This set the stage for Ved Dave, Prep’s No. 3 singles player, to secure the championship. Dave defeated Seminary’s Yicheng Li 6-2, 6-3 to clinch the championship and lead Prep to victory.
“I was very happy for Ved, he’s worked so hard over the summer,” Gregory said. “You could see the payoff today, he’s played great all year and performed excellently today.”
Seminary’s semifinal winners included William Hall at No. 1 singles, and both doubles teams. The Blue Knights ended their team season with a record of 13-1.
“It's been four years since we won the Wyoming Valley Conference, we did that with a 13-0 record,” said Seminary head coach Raphael Cooper. “We obviously wanted the gold, and that was our goal, but we can't be disappointed with the season we had.”
Scranton Prep’s first round match in the state tournament is scheduled for May 14, away against District 11 champion Moravian Academy.
Class 2A Boys Tennis Team Championship
Scranton Prep 3, Wyoming Seminary 0
Singles — 1. Ethan Borick (SP) led William Hall 6-2, 5-3 (match halted); 2. Akhilesh Velaga (SP) def. Ansarali Atabayev 6-1, 6-1; 3. Ved Dave (SP) def. Yicheng Li 6-2, 6-3.
Doubles — 1. Matt Cohen/Dylan Tost (SP) led Christopher Ramos/Andrew Tsui 7-6 (4), 1-3 (match halted); 2. David Geyfman/Jackson Keating (SP) def. Pablo Otero/Benen Griffin 6-1, 6-0.
Class 2A Semifinals
Wyoming Seminary 3, Holy Cross 0
Singles — 1. William Hall (SEM) def. Alex Harrison 6-1, 6-1; 2. Ansarali Atabayev (SEM) led Ray Zhang 6-3, 4-3 (match halted); 3. David Huester (HC) led Yicheng Li 6-4, 2-1 (match halted).
Doubles — 1. Christopher Ramos/Andrew Tsui (SEM) def. Tristan Gilroy/Guiseppe Pilone 6-1, 6-1; 2. Pablo Otero/Benen Griffin (SEM) def. Lucas Urban/Colin Ritterbush 6-3, 6-2.
Scranton Prep 3, Dallas 0
Singles — 1. Ethan Borick (SP) defeated Jon Florencio 6-0, 6-2; 2. Akhilesh Velaga (SP) defeated Nate Linnen 6-0, 6-0; 3. Ved Dave (SP) defeated Sam Robson 6-0, 6-1.
Doubles — 1. Matt Cohen/Dylan Tost (SP) were leading Artem Smagin/Kevin Basyalga 6-3, 2-4 (match halted); 2. David Geyfman/Jackson Keating (SP) were leading Logan Tomkins/Andrew Menaker 6-4, 0-2 (match halted).
