NO QUIT: Princeton High boys’ tennis star Noah Lilienthal hits a backhand as he competed at first singles against WW/P-South in the NJSIAA Group 3 state team final last Wednesday at Mercer County Park. Senior Lilienthal defeated Robert Siniakowicz 0-6, 6-4, 10-3 (tiebreak) to provide a highlight as PHS lost 4-1 to the Pirates. The Little Tigers wrapped up the spring by defeating Hopewell Valley 4-1 in a regular season match last Thursday to end with a final record of 20-3. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

For Princeton High boys’ tennis star Noah Lilienthal, it would have been understandable if he had thrown in the towel early in the second set as he faced Robert Siniakowicz of WW/P-South in the NJSIAA Group 3 state team final match last Wednesday.

Having lost the first set 6-0 in the clash of first singles stars at Mercer County Park, Lilienthal jumped out to an early lead in the second set only to feel a twinge in his left shoulder.

The match was stopped as Lilienthal, a lefty, was administered to by a trainer on the court for several minutes. Despite the discomfort, Lilienthal wasn’t about to quit.

“It was a pretty sharp pain for a game; he put some tape on it so I think that probably helped,” said Lilienthal.

“This really means a lot to me. I don’t have anything to lose so why not just try to go for it. It was hurting a bit but I kind of just forgot about it.”

Forging ahead, Lilienthal pulled out the second set 6-4 and then the foes played a 10-point tiebreak to decide their showdown as the Pirates had already won the four other matches to clinch the team victory. With players from both teams lining the fence, Lilienthal proceeded to prevail 10-3 to earn a memorable win.

“It was kind of a blur; I just looked over at my teammates and I smiled, I thought of everything as humorous and it worked for me,” said Lilienthal, who is headed to Wesleyan University where he will be competing for its men’s tennis team.

“I was like ‘if they are going to cheer for Robert, it is going to be funny.’ I am never going to get to do this again, so I have got to love the moment. When I am older, I will remember having all of my teammates on the side and luckily I won. Even if I lost, I just wanted to have a good time.”

Lilienthal certainly wasn’t having a good time in the early stages of the match as Brown commit Siniakowicz dominated the first set with his power game.

“I knew he was just lights out in the first set, I told the coach (Sarah Hibbert) at every single changeover in that first set, I am just going to keep playing,” recalled Lilienthal. “If he keeps this up, good for him. He had the crowd there and all of his friends pumping him up. He had all of that good stuff going.”

Winning the first game of the second set got Lilienthal going, notwithstanding the subsequent shoulder issue. “I was like, ‘I don’t want to lose 6-0, 6-0,’ I took it from there,” said Lilienthal.

Looking ahead, Lilienthal is hoping to take that momentum into the state singles tournament, which starts this weekend.

“I am not going to get to do it again, so I have got to make the most of it and enjoy the time on the court,” said Lilienthal.

“I have got to expect to suffer a bit if I want to win. I have just got to take every point one at a time and enjoy being a Tiger.”

PHS head coach Sarah Hibbert enjoyed seeing her team start the day on Wednesday by edging perennial power Moorestown 3-2 in the Group 3 semis.

“Moorestown is a historic powerhouse, we have a rivalry with them in the past,” said Hibbert.

“It was really nice to win that semifinal and move on to the final. This whole season we haven’t been ranked in the top 20 and I knew that we were way better than people were giving us credit for. It was nice to come out and show that we deserve to be here and that we are one of the best teams in the state.”

In the final against local rival WW/P-S, PHS fought valiantly but couldn’t overcome the top-ranked Pirates as second singles star Jerry Gu and third singles standout Kevin Yang each fell in straight sets against the Pirates as did the two Little Tiger doubles teams.

“Unfortunately we ran into probably, at the moment, the best team in the state,” said Hibbert, who had to juggle her doubles lineup on the day due to an injury to first doubles player Richard Yang.

“Having to change out doubles right before today didn’t help us out there. They all still competed hard, they fought hard despite not being in the positions they are used to. They are a tough team and our guys fought hard and we weren’t able to pull it out there, but they have had a great season. It is nice for Noah and Kevin as seniors to get back here … we were here when they were freshmen. It is a nice cyclical journey.”

Hibbert appreciated the toughness displayed by Lilienthal in his triumph.

“Noah has been a rock for us this season, he and Robert have had some really good matches; it has gone back and forth all year,” said Hibbert. “He said I want to do this for the team, I am going to keep fighting. He just seemed to find an extra gear and then in that tiebreaker, he played some of the best tennis he has played. He really pulled it all together in the tie break.”

Over the course of the spring, things came together for the Little Tigers as they produced some superb tennis.

“It is a good group, they have worked really hard this year and have had good results,” added Hibbert, whose squad wrapped up the spring by defeating Hopewell Valley 4-1 in a regular season match last Thursday to end with a final record of 20-3.

“They enjoy being out on the court together and it is ‘let’s do it.’ I wish we had one more win to finish up, but overall I am proud of the way we fought today. It didn’t turn out the way we wanted at the end but we wanted to prove that we are one of the top teams.”

Lilienthal, for his part, who didn’t play for PHS last spring due to other commitments, enjoyed coming back for his senior campaign.

“The number one thing that is amazing about this team is that we are able to take serious situations and make them funny,” said Lilienthal.

“Things are going bad today and we have Ian Shang cracking jokes. Everyone has personality and that has helped give our team success.”