Roster:
Fouad Boustros – Junior
Gretchen Ball – Freshman
Colin Crawfoird – Junior
Daniel Cunningham – Sophomore
Alexis Ditomassi – Senior
Lauren Filburn – Junior
Alena Frye – Sophomore
Michael Gauch – Junior
Matthew Gavin – Sophomore
Lakshmi Gondesi – Sophomore
Jana Haikal – Junior
Meghan Herring – Junior
Brigid Kelley – Freshman
Patrick Newton – Senior
Daniel Nowak – Sophomore
Sean O'Rourke – Junior
Elaina Parrillo – Freshman
Duncan Parrott – Sophomore
Erica Pascocello – Sophomore
Margaret Pedicini – Sophomore
Niko Piperis – Junior
Eduardo Rovira – Junior
Alie Saraceno – Sophomore
Jake Sheehan – Senior
Kathleen Shriver – Senior
Kim Simmons – Senior
Bri Smith – Sophomore
Karina Thornton – Sophomore
William Torsiglieri – Sophomore
Andrew Tort – Sophomore
Bennett Wirth – Freshman
Griffin Wong – Junior
Patrick Wyeth – Freshman
Teams defeated this season: Duke, Florida, UCF, Dartmouth, Brown, Cornell, UPenn, URI, Bowdion, Armstrong State, Iowa, Nebraska, University of Wisconsin Whitewater, Virginia Tech, and the University of Pittsburg.
Q: How did you first hear about the Tennis On Campus program? What made you decide to actively take part and also become a leader on your campus? How do you feel about TOC and being a captain?
I first found out about club tennis at the student involvement fair the BC hosts. I was fortunate to make the team and loved it so much that I wanted to become a leader on the team. I feel TOC is a great organization. It gives avid tennis players who are not on a varsity team in college the opportunity to play competitive tennis at great locations aka Hilton Head. I love being an officer on the team. There is no better feeling then leading a group of people you love. I feel like I am Tyrion Lannister leading the charge in the Battle of Blackwater.
Q: How did you enjoy your National Championships experience last year?
We loved our Nationals experience last year. We had a lot of great matches and even though we fell short of the gold bracket we created memories and sent our seniors off on a high note.
Q: What does it mean to be back? Was it a more difficult road to return to Nationals?
It is great to be back at Nationals. We had our best season since the founding of BC club tennis this year and are really looking forward to a shot at cracking the gold bracket.
Q: In what ways has your team improved this year?
We have a lot of young talent that as joined the national squad. Notably sophomore Alena Frye has been a huge impact on the team taking over our girls’ singles role. We also have two sophomores Dan Cunningham and Erica Pascocello that have been very solid doubles players.
Q: What do you tell new players about Nationals, or players that are traveling for the first time to compete for your school?
We tell them that it is an amazing experience and it is one of the best weekends with the team. We encourage them to push themselves, but also to enjoy the tournament. However, if they hit more than five double faults over the course of the tournament they have to walk home.
Q: Who was your toughest opponent at past Nationals and how did they challenge you to become better?
Minnesota was our toughest opponent. They were the reason we did not get into the gold bracket last year and they ended up coming in second overall. We felt that we were close with them and all we needed was a little more match play practice. In addition, we have come very close in the past and lost in super tiebreakers before, so those teams challenged us to work on playing under pressure.
Q: Does your team actively use social media to stay connected? If so, what social media platforms are your favorites? Does your team use social media in any special way that you feel sets you apart from other teams?
We use Twitter and Instagram mainly. Senior Kathleen Shriver dominated the social media game with her incredible puns. She passed on her reigns to sophomore Erica Pascocello and the king of social media, Fouad Boutros. Follow us @bcclubtennis on Twitter and Instagram.
Q: Do you have many seniors on your team? Do you think they know about opportunities after graduation like “Sets in the City” or young adult social leagues? Do you think anyone on your team would be interested in starting one?
We have five seniors on our team. They are all pretty washed up and may not touch a racquet after they graduate.
Share with us some of the ways you help out in the local and global communities in the name of tennis.
We participate in a charity event hosted by Northeastern and all the proceeds go to the Franklin Tennis Park association.
Share with us a funny story about the 2015 team or team member(s).
Last semester when we went to the tournament in Hilton Head, S.C., Jake Sheehan forgot the second-most important item, his tennis shoes. He had to go the pro shop and ended up buying the ugliest bright orange-pink tennis shoes. They turned out to be good luck as we came in second and have done very well this year.
If a local newspaper was to write a story about your team what is the one thing you’d want to make sure they included?
How much of a family we are. We all love tennis, but it is the camaraderie the team has that makes it special.
