A Glance at CB West Tennis

Court Street Press: How has tennis adjusted to Covid?

CB West Tennis: For one, we’ve got to wear masks on the sidelines at all times. Some schools (not Central Bucks, though) even require players to wear masks while on the court. Another way tennis has adjusted is players may get driven by their parents to the away matches instead of taking the bus if players or parents are wary of exposure.

CSP: What challenges have there been?

CBWT: Due to Covid specifically, there were several players that chose not to play due to exposure. Additionally, there was no season last year because of Covid, so many of our players may be rusty due to that; plus, this is the sophomores’ first season. Another challenge non-Covid related is injuries. Some of our top players got injuries during and before the season, including a player on first doubles who hurt his knee and another player who fractured his wrist.

CSP: How’s the season going? How’s it looking?

CBWT: It’s going decent so far; we’ve won about 40% and lost about 60% of our games as a team. It’s not looking like we’re going to win the conference this year, but we’re hanging in there. However, our first two singles players both only lost one or two matches the entire season so far and are looking like they might make it to the doubles district playoffs as partners.

CSP: How many games are there? When did the season start, and when will it end?

CBWT: There are a total of 11 games this season, but one was recently cancelled due to weather and might not get rescheduled before the season ends. Tryouts began on March 8^th, our first game was March 23^rd against Council Rock North, and our final game will most likely be against Wissahickon on April 26^th. The season is much shorter this year due to Covid; it normally ends around mid-May.

CSP: Are there spectators?

CBWT: Yeah, for the most part, there are… in Central Bucks, spectators are allowed (when we are playing sister schools, and some other schools). For most other matches spectators have been tolerated as long as they weren’t too close together.

CSP: How many players are there this year? Who’s coaching?

CBWT: CB West tennis has a full varsity team (3 singles and 4 doubles, plus one extra doubles as exhibition). We also have about 4 JV doubles teams. The coach this year is Coach Errett and the assistant coach is Coach Barreiro. Coach Mancini, the traditional coach, is not coaching this year because he is taking a break from coaching for a few years.