(Photo by Bill Allen/NJ SportAction) JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT: Princeton Day School junior first singles star David Holland belts a backhand in a recent match. Last week, Holland rolled past Brian Cedrowksi of Montclair Kimberley 6-0, 6-0 to win the Prep B first singles title. Holland's win helped PDS win its third straight Prep B team title. He finished the season with a 21-0 record, his second straight undefeated campaign.

PDS Boys' Tennis Wins 3rd Straight Prep B as Doubles Pairs Aid Dominant Singles Trio

Bill Alden

Heading into the state Prep B boys' tennis championships last week, Princeton Day School was confident that it could dominate the singles portion of the competition.

After all, the PDS singles trio of David Holland at No. 1, Neil Karandikar at No. 2, and Bo Marshall at No. 3 had only lost two matches between them all spring and each had won their flight at the Mercer County Tournament last month.

True to form, Holland, Karandikar, and Marshall breezed through their respective draws as the Prep B to win their flights. But it was two players brought up from the PDS junior varsity squad, Matt Costello and James Cole, who may have provided the most critical points to the cause as they bucked form by taking second at second doubles to help PDS edge Montclair Kimberley for the team title.

"It was a big team effort," said PDS head coach Rome Campbell in reflecting on the title, which marked the program's third straight Prep B crown. "Costello and Cole were the dark horses for us. They gained two points for us in the preliminary and the semis, they were key to our tournament. Our first doubles team [Patrick Murphy and Alvin Song] also picked up a point. That was critical for us since we only beat Montclair Kimberley 12-10."

While the margin ended up being slim, Campbell said his singles players didn't deviate from the business-like approach they have displayed all season.

"We didn't feel the pressure that we had in the past two years," said Campbell. "We had faced the other boys in the regular season and we had done pretty well against them. The boys were certainly confident and relaxed. There was some anxiety because it was a championship but we had been through tough challenges with the county tournament and matches against teams like Delbarton, Lawrenceville, and Montgomery."

Perhaps the sweetest win for the Panthers was the one posted by Marshall at third singles. "He certainly went out a winner," said Campbell of his senior star who posted a 21-1 record this spring and topped Andres Pulido of Wardlaw-Hartridge 6-0, 6-0 in the Prep B title match. "He won a Prep title in doubles as a sophomore. He was our most important player from the point of view of making our lineup extremely tough."

Freshman star Karandikar surprised Campbell with the toughness he showed in his debut campaign at the high school level. "He really did mature as the season went on," said Campbell of Karandikar who topped Nikhil Anbarasan of Rutgers Prep 6-1, 6-0 in his championship match. "We knew he was a seasoned tournament player but he exceeded my expectations."

PDS' top gun, the brilliant junior Holland, met his coach's expectations as he went 21-0 this spring to go undefeated for the second straight season.

"I really felt that the No. 1 players on just about all the teams were really deep," said Campbell citing such players as Lance Goulbourne of Hun, Matt Tervooren of Lawrenceville, and Matt Pierson of Montgomery.

"David was really challenged and he always came through. In particular against Leland Richardson of WW/P-S, David was down 4-1 in the second and won the next five games to clinch the match."

Campbell was proud of how the team collectively met the challenges in front of it as the Panthers produced a spring to remember.

"It certainly shows that we were a team to be reckoned with in the preps and the county," said Campbell, whose team posted a 15-1 record in dual matches this spring. "It's the most successful team in my tenure. We went 67-2 in singles matches. The previous best in a season was 66."

For Campbell, however, the season was about more than just posting win after win. "It's a great bunch of kids; they are hard-working boys who are gentlemen on the court," asserted Campbell. "They take it very seriously — but as a team we had a lot of fun."

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