Above: Ravi Vishnu, half of EG’s #1 Doubles team that contributed an important win against Cranston West 5/11. All three doubles teams won their matches that day. Photos by Chuck Nadeau

By Kyle Poccia

In an intense match last Thursday (5/11), the East Greenwich High School tennis team emerged victorious as they defeated Cranston West after hard fought games. With the overall match ending at 4-3, it was a testament to both teams’ determination. Throughout the match, there were moments of momentum shifts as Cranston struck the first blow, winning at the singles one position. 

The saviors for East Greenwich this go around were the doubles teams as they put on a spectacular performance, sweeping all three matches and only dropping six games in total. These wins were crucial as the match was still up in the air as second singles player, Owen Padula, and fourth singles player, Cyrus Davoudi, both found themselves locked tightly with their respective opponents in a third set. 

Although the second and fourth singles positions were ultimately lost in hard fought matches, the win was secured as one of East Greenwich’s captains, Kyle Poccia, won his match at the third singles position in straight sets, 6-3 6-2. This win pushed his overall record to 11-0, sporting the only undefeated record out of East Greenwich’s singles players. 

After another win – 7-0 – Tuesday (5/15) against West Warwick, East Greenwich improved to 12-0 for the season.
East Greenwich’s final regular match of the season is Wednesday, May 17, against the North Kingstown Skippers – Senior Night for the Avengers. With both teams undefeated, this is a highly anticipated match. It may very well be a glimpse at what the Division II finals will look like at Slater Park June 3. 

Captains Kyle Poccia, Owen Padula, and Cyrus Davoudi, all seniors, are looking forward to having an opportunity to make some more history for Avenger athletics as they have their biggest shot at a title post Covid. 

“It’s awesome that our senior night happens to be against North Kingstown. That’s the match we feel we need the most support for, so it’s lucky that the match got scheduled when it did,” Padula said. “This is a team we’ve been eager to play and it’ll be nice having some momentum from the parents and fans to push us.”

Kyle Poccia at #3 Singles came up with a big win in the 5/11 match against Cranston West. Photo by Chuck Nadeau

Aaron Garrian, half of the #2 Doubles team that also scored a big win against Cranston West. Photo by Chuck Nadeau

Owen Padula at #2 Singles. Photo by Chuck Nadeau

Henry Seeley at #1 Singles. Photo by Chuck Nadeau

The Avengers line up before the match against Cranston West. Photo by Chuck Nadeau

Kyle Poccia, a member of the EGHS Boys Tennis team, is a senior at EGHS and a reporter for EG News.