Rivals HH Prep, HH Christian take differing paths to SCISA tennis final

Back in February, Hilton Head Prep tennis coach Clint Van Aswegen figured he had a solid nucleus to make a strong run at a third consecutive SCISA boys’ championship. That is, until the date approached to start preseason practice.

That’s about when Van Aswegen learned his top two returning players — Nos. 1 and 2 in last year’s lineup — wouldn’t be returning. Factor in departed seniors, and five of the six players in last year’s final had to be replaced.

“That was a huge, ‘Whoa! How are we going to do this now?’ ” Van Aswegen recalled. “But all the guys stepped up.”

With an assist from a key newcomer, the Dolphins are back in the Class 2-A title match — familiar territory and new adventure at the same time. To finish it off, though, they must win Thursday’s cross-island showdown against a veteran Hilton Head Christian squad hungry for its own crown.

The Eagles are making their third championship appearance in the past five seasons, with a trio of players left wanting from the previous two finals.

“We’ve had our chances,” Eagles coach Eric Wammock said. “They’re just going to get after it and give it everything they’ve got.”

The match, originally scheduled for Sumter, was relocated at the schools’ request to Hilton Head Island Beach & Tennis Club to spare parents and fellow students from unnecessary travel. The same thing happened when they met for the SCISA 3-A title two years ago.

The teams split their two regular-season meetings, with Prep winning 5-4 in March and the Eagles returning the favor with a 7-2 decision three weeks later. Wammock is quick to point out, though, that Prep had regulars missing in both matches.

“It really could be a different match because we haven’t played them with their full roster yet,” he said.

Van Aswegen differed, saying the Eagles “played better from top to bottom” in their April encounter. No. 1 Marcus Ferreira was Prep’s only singles winner that day, beating Cameron Clark 6-2, 6-4.

“(Clark) gave Marcus a ridiculously tough match,” Van Aswegen said. “And their No. 6 player (John Minter) — I had to go back to my list and see if it was the same kid. That (result) was definitely all performance.”

The Dolphins’ season turned out to be shaped by a set of early surprises.

First came news that Colten Lavery and Trevor White, who held down the top two spots in last year’s title run, had chosen not to play high school tennis.

“That was a little tough,” Van Aswegen said.

But a pleasant surprise was in store, too. Wayne Ferreira, a winner of 15 ATP titles in the 1990s, moved his family to to Hilton Head Island last summer and son Marcus — a four-star recruit as a sophomore — was interested in playing.

“They kind of missed the signup in the first go-round,” Van Aswegen recalled. “His parents called to say he really wants to play on the high school team, which is different from most top-top kids.”

Ferreira slid into the vacated No. 1 slot. Stepping up to No. 2 was senior Sam Fried, who played No. 6 last year but recently signed to play NCAA Division I tennis at Mercer College.

“He’s worked his tail off,” Van Aswegen said. “I feel like Sam has been the backbone of the team. He’s been here the last three years, and he’s the only one that’s been here for all three championship (matches).”

The Eagles, meanwhile, have a set of players who would like to finally scale that summit. Alex Likins, Tate Lucci and Charles Michael were part of the HHCA team that lost the 2012 title match to Porter-Gaud, joined by Clark for the 2014 loss to Prep.

Clark, who recently signed for Coker College, is the only senior of the bunch.

“Urgency? I would say no. Desire, yes.” Wammock said. “These guys definitely have a drive. But to play with urgency sometimes can be debilitating.

“We just talk about making sure at the end of the day, they give all they can and there are no regrets as far as effort. The result is going to take care of itself, one way or the other.”

This story was originally published May 4, 2016 at 7:57 PM with the headline "Rivals HH Prep, HH Christian take differing paths to SCISA tennis final."