The Boothbay Region High School 2015 boys tennis team will begin its season on Friday, April 24.

Coach Mark Gorey announced the team roster this week.

"With our enrollment at the low end of class C schools, I feel fortunate that eleven young men have chosen to play tennis, one of the best lifelong sports there is. Our roster this year includes five returning starters (Collin Thompson, senior; Daniel Drummond, junior; Raymond Perry, junior; Nick Gorey, junior; and Duncan Drapeau, sophomore), and six first-year players (Joseph DiMauro, senior; Griffin Kane, sophomore, Reilly Spear, sophomore; Nick McCullough, sophomore; Will Berry, freshman; and Max Hoecker, freshman).”

Gorey said this is an eclectic and great group of guys to work with.

"One recent Saturday, we went to see a home match between Bowdoin’s men’s tennis team and the Brandeis Netmen inside the Brunswick Farleigh Field House. After early season practices inside of the high school gymnasium, this was a camaraderie-building experience, allowing us to see the skills, which we are all striving to achieve."

The Seahawks' season will begin with some players on school trips this week.

"While our turnout for tennis this year is encouraging, the Mountain Valley Conference unexpectedly scheduled our first countable match (against Carrabec, away) during the April vacation week, and we have three players away on trips. We need a minimum of seven players to fill out the three singles and two doubles matches.

“Every year, the first match dates are tricky, with students understandably away on family vacations or gone on school trips to Europe. Last year we lost our opening match against Wiscasset, largely due to not having two of our starters who were on a trip to Europe. Dropping an early match like this can make it impossible to get into the MVC championship at the end of the season."

When asked about his team's chances for success this year, Gorey said, "No question, our returning five starters will be at the core of our success this year. That said, our six first-year players are absolutely vital to our doubles play, and our continued strength and depth next year. There’s a missconception that the singles matches are the most important: each of the five matches in any given contest (including #2 and #1 doubles) is equally important to the contest outcome.

"Once we have everyone back, we should be a very competitive squad in the MVC this season. We finished 8-3 in the regular season last year, and then lost to Waynflete in a Western Class C quarterfinal playoff match, hosted on our new courts. Waynflete went on to win the State Class C title, defeating George Stevens Academy 5-0.

“I fully expect us to be playoff contenders again this year."