For Joan Nuse, taking over the Hun School boys’ tennis program after coaching the girls’ team at the school for 26 years has proven to be a good fit.

“It has been interesting,” said Nuse, who was inducted into the Hun Athletic Hall of Fame in 2014 for her success with the girls’ program.

“The thing that has helped make it an easy transition is that I know a lot of them from having taught them, coaching them in middle school or in swimming this winter. They seem happy to have me.”

Nuse is happy with the way the team has played as it got off to a 2-2 start. “I think they have played pretty well,” said Nuse, whose team edged Hill 4-3 last Monday. “They were disappointed that they didn’t beat Pennington (a 3-2 loss on April 7) but they were happy with the win over Gill (a 4-1 victory on April 2). That was a really tough match, there were three 3-setters. The kids were really resilient, that was good to see in the second match.”

Junior Adam Doynow has shown toughness at the first singles spot in the Hun lineup.

“He is working on becoming quite a powerful player,” said Nuse of Doynow. “He has good strokes, he has a good game plan. We are helping him stay focused in matches.”

At second singles, senior Foster Broad is focused on doing his best for the squad.

“Foster has been with team forever,” said Nuse. “It is his fourth year on varsity and I coached him in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade. He has such a great attitude. In the past few years he has been dealing with injuries and I love the way he never gives up and does whatever he can.”

A newcomer, freshman Greg Baker, has shown he can do some good things on the court at third singles.

“Greg has a good repertoire of shots, he is adjusting to the varsity level,” said Nuse.

At first doubles, another freshman, Evan Goldsmith, has partnered with senior James Mogilever, to give the Raiders a promising pair in that spot.

“Evan has been a good pleasant surprise, he played lacrosse in middle school but he came out for tennis this year and has a nice game,” said Nuse.

“It is to nice to put a freshman with a senior. James has the experience and Evan brings that youthful enthusiasm. They get along really well on the court.”

Nuse is enthusiastic about the twosome of senior Charlie Ill and junior Ajay Vasisht at second doubles.

“Both are new to varsity, they played a lot of JV last year,” said Nuse. “They have stepped up to varsity this year, they have a good attitude. They are super coachable, they give their all on the court.”

Junior Ben Musoke-Lubega has given Hun some versatility. “Ben has played in our MAPL (Mid-Atlantic Prep League) matches,” added Nuse. “He can fill in wherever we need him, singles or doubles. He was at the top of the JV team last year; he is a hard worker.”

With the Mercer County Tournament slated for April 20 and 22 at Mercer County Park, Nuse is looking for her players to produce some good matches.

“We are hoping to go in and have a good experience and learn from it,” said Nuse, who guided the girls’ program to a number of county crowns.

“We have a couple of freshmen and a couple of players new to varsity so it can be a little scary for them.”