STAC BOYS TENNIS: OWEGO BRINGING YOUTH TO THE COURT (12 PHOTOS) (2019-03-18)

BY TIM TAYLOR
Tioga County Sports Report
OWEGO - The Owego boys tennis team will be youthful and light on numbers this spring, but the Indians are hoping to be competitive just the same.

Head coach Erica Haray-Butcher has one junior in Evan Hamed. The other members of the seven-player team are younger - including an eighth-grader.

The coach is hoping that what the group lacks in experience it can make up for with athleticism.

"Fortunately, we have really good athletes, so some of these kids are really picking tennis up quickly. Some played last year and have improved already quite a bit, so we're definitely a young team," she said. "Some of our players are very new to tennis, but I think we'll make up for it in athleticism and also conditioning, making sure they're able to chase the balls if they need to chase the balls."

With the numbers thin, Haray-Butcher is still looking to fill the roster. Even though opening day is just around the corner, it's still not too late to join the team.

"We need 10 for a full tell team," Haray-Butcher. "We're still recruiting. We're trying to get more kids here. Tennis isn't quite as popular in Owego as it is in some other schools. Some teams have 20 or so kids."

Haray-Butcher said the Indians may have to forfeit a match or two during a team match. She is willing to do that rather than have no program at all.

"We're just trying to expose more kids to the sport, because it's great, life-long sport," she said. "I think we can still win some of our matches."

In an effort to build the high school, program, Owego holds a summer camp and has also had a modified program the past two years.

Owego's first match is Monday at home against Johnson City at 4 p.m.