By Ashley Pavlakis
Cover credit – John Selvaggio
In tennis, there is a term called an ACE, which means it’s a serve hit so well the opponent can’t get their racquet on it. The Bayport-Blue Point girls varsity tennis team is untouchable right now after an undefeated season.
The girls are led by first-year head coach John Selvaggio, who previously coached the boy’s team for five years before making the switch. Selvaggio led the Phantoms to a 16-0-0 regular season and his first Suffolk County Championship as head coach of the girl’s team. The Phantoms have won the title three years in a row before his arrival.
“It feels great, it’s nice to see the kids’ hard work pay off. This is the fourth consecutive year that this team has captured the Suffolk County Title. They’re a strong team and we have a lot of depth. It’s the next step that we have to get past, we haven’t won the Long Island Championship yet. This is our fourth year giving it a go,” said Selvaggio.
The Phantoms went on to play in the Long Island Championship vs Cold Spring Harbor on Saturday afternoon, the Messenger reached out to Selvaggio for comment post-match.
“I inherited a program that was extremely well coached and the foundation for success was built long ago. This team was able to rely on three 8th graders and one 9th grader [all first-year starters] due to the tremendous leadership and high expectations coming from our senior leaders,” said Selvaggio on the Phantoms capturing the Long Island Championship.
The title comes as a first in team history and the girls will now move on to states.
“The girls put in a ton of work, these kids train all year round and they’ve been successful in the past. We have a nice young group coming up now which is guided by some great seniors which is sort of a nice transition. We’re kind of in a transition phase, we have very strong senior leadership, and we have three eighth graders that are starting currently,”
Bayport-Blue Point High School is part of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) and competes in League III. The Phantoms are the only team across four leagues to have an undefeated season.
“The way that it works is the divisions are set up geographically, so it has nothing to do with the playoffs. We won that division, and we were undefeated. We went on to the small school playoffs and won the Suffolk County Championship which is now broken down by school size,” said Selvaggio. “The girls put in a ton of work, these kids train all year round and they’ve been successful in the past. We have a nice young group coming up now which is guided by some great seniors which is sort of a nice transition. We’re kind of in a transition phase, we have very strong senior leadership, and we have three eighth graders that are starting currently.”
Selvaggio recognized the mix of talent his team possesses with young and Veteran experience prevalent throughout the roster.
“In a sport like tennis, you have to earn your spot. I’m not pulling kids up to sit on the bench, I’m pulling kids up to be starters. Tennis is a little unique, a lot of other sports pull kids up for the practices and to get some experience. These kids are starting and they’re winning, my three eighth graders were all-county this year,” said Selvaggio.
Seniors are an integral part of any team; they’re usually equipped with the most experience and have been through the ups and downs. Selvaggio praised his eight Phantom seniors.
“They’ve [seniors] been everything, all these kids have been around the program, most of them since middle school. They run the show, they know what’s expected of them and they make sure that expectation is passed down,” said Selvaggio.
