After finishing as national runner-up a year ago and returning a veteran roster this spring, Roadrunner Men's Tennis Coach Brian Rowan is already showing confidence that his team will enjoy a successful 2023 campaign.
And his team gave him every reason for his enthusiasm on Friday as the Runners rolled to a 9-0 triumph over host Brookdale CC in the GSAC openers for both teams.
"This was a good start for our team today in the conference," noted Coach Rowan. "We have a deep group and a lot of guys got to play today. We will keep improving through the season and hope to peak at the right time."
The confidence has already begun finding it's way to the players too. Sophomore Rockland Caselli won his firsT singles match by scores of 1-6, 5-2 and 6-3, and then teamed with sophomore Kyle Beacon for a win at first doubles by an 8-3 decision.
"We definitely feel we have a good team this year especially with a lot of returning players," said Caselli, whose squad are also defending Region 19 champions. "We're excited about how far we can go. We know we will continue to improve throughout the season."
Sophomore Jason Petrin also joined Caselli and Deacon in registering wins in both singles and doubles matches.
Next up for the Runners will be the always-tough Harford invitational in Maryland on March 25-26 before returning to conference action on April 1 with a home match vs. Ocean County College.
See a 2023 season preview for the Roadrunners below.
Roadrunner Men's Tennis Season Preview
Head Coach: Brian Rowan, 19th season, four NJCAA National Championships
Assistant Coach: Sean Sloane
Last season: The Runners enjoyed one of the best seasons in school history, winning the Region 19 title and placing second nationally to Oxford-Emmory in the NJCAA National Championship Meet.
Roster: Members of the Spring 2023 roster include:
Rockland Caselli | SO | Schalick HS
Colin Christoff | SO | Woodstown HS
Kyle Deacon | SO | Clearview HS
Benjamin Konyak | SO | Schalick HS
James Keenan | SO | Delsea Regional HS
Jason Petrin | SO | Woodstown HS
William Chew | FR | Audubon HS
Matt Massengale | FR | Gateway Regional
Nicolas Meehan | FR | Millville HS
Christian Rafanello | FR | Delran HS
Coach Brian Rowan on his 2023 Roadrunners: "We had a good start for our team in the conference," said Rowan. "We have a deep group and a lot of guys got to play. We will keep improving through the season and hope to peak at the right time,"