New coach encouraged as FHS girls tennis 7-0 in district; boys 6-1
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Farragut tennis player Michelle Lian, a senior - Photos by Tony Cox
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Junior Lukas Bukovsky, Farragut tennis player - Photos by Tony Cox
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Senior Parker Fitzgerald, Farragut tennis player - Photos by Tony Cox
Unblemished and outstanding, that’s a simple way to label the District 4-2A play of new tennis head coach Joan Swanson’s Farragut Lady Admirals (7-0) and FHS boys (6-1) through mid-April.
Looking ahead just a bit, “I’m hoping both of these teams can make it all the way to the state playoffs,” Swanson said.
Lady Admirals
About her girls, “They beat Maryville 7-2, they beat Bearden 9-0; they’re just a strong team,” Swanson said. “There’s a lot of depth to this team. ... This is a very diverse group. All 12 members of my girls team can play any spot willingly, happily.”
In singles, No. 1 player for the Lady Ads is junior Isha Patel; No. 2 is sophomore Ella Ye; No. 3 features junior Alexandria Vallova; No. 4 player is junior Anika Patel; No. 5 is junior Sophia Chen; and No. 6 features “a very strong, consistent, steady freshman,” Olivia Wu. No. 7 also is a freshman, Cindy Li.
As for FHS girls doubles, “one of my strong seniors is Rachel Le,” Swanson said, as Le pairs at No. 3 doubles with junior Riley Turner.
No. 1 doubles are the Patel Lady Ads (no relation), while No. 2 doubles is Ye and Wu.
Rounding out the roster, while also looking to contribute, are girls players Michelle Lian (senior), Gianna Pelusio (junior) and Anna Guiseppe (sophomore).
“I could take any of my 12 players, and they could easily play No. 1 on other teams,” Swanson said.
Overall, Swanson’s girls “are passionate, they’re supportive, dedicated, respectful, dependable,” the coach said.
Farragut boys, assistant
For Swanson’s boys, No. 1 is junior Leyton Lu; No. 2 features senior Parker Fitzgerald; No. 3 is senior Jackson Neal; No. 4 player is senior Derek Diaz; No. 5 is junior Lukas Bukovsky; and No. 6 “is a very strong freshman, Skyler Meade.”
Meade, in fact, “is undefeated in all matches this season,” Swanson added.
In addition, “I have very strong back-up players who can fill those singles spots,” the coach said about juniors Kori Faulkner and Albert Liu, along with “strong doubles partner” Kaelan Tonnos, a junior.
Also adding depth are juniors James Nguyen and Evan Conger, sophomore Lucas Hu and freshman Jackson Slayden.
Overall with the boys, “There’s a lot of depth to this team, too,” the coach said. “I anticipate they’’ll go far, not only in district but possibly to Sectionals.”
Swanson said she’s been assisted by her husband, Jim Swanson.
