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Hun Girls' Tennis Wins 1st Prep A Title Spurred by Unique Team Camaraderie
By Bill Alden
If it had been just any match for the Hun School girls' tennis team, Ann Wright and Nina Licciardello may have opted to pull out when they both woke up Sunday suffering from the stomach flu.
But the two seniors weren't about to be left behind as the Raiders traveled up to the Pingry School for the finals of the Prep A state tournament.
With the Raiders having never won the Prep A title in school history, Wright and Licciardello, the squad's top doubles team, were resolved to do whatever they could to help the team accomplish that long sought-after goal.
Shaking off their queasiness, the pair came up with the decisive performance of the day as they topped Tracy Chung and Jackie Altieri of Kent Place, 6-3, 7-5, to win their flight and help lead Hun to the team title.
"Ann and Nina were key, they played such great tennis," said Hun head coach Joan Nuse, whose squad scored 24 points to finish ahead of Kent Place (20), Princeton Day School (16), and Lawrenceville (6) in the team standings.
"The key was when they got down in the second set, they lifted their game to another level. They knew that their match could determine the title. If they had lost, we would've ended up in a tie for first."
Another pivotal performance for Hun was turned in by Angela DiPastina at No. 1 singles, who produced a 6-1, 6-4 win over long-time rival Alexis Jacobi of PDS to win the title in her division.
"Angela played great," added Nuse, who got second place finishes from Erica Wood at No. 2 singles, Lucy DiPastina at No. 3 singles, and from the pair of Caitie Druker and Gwen Birnkrant at second doubles. "She and Alexis have played one good match after another against each other. Angela went about her business and handled things like a professional."
In Nuse's view, the program's breakthrough in the Prep A tourney was due in part to a special team unity. "They have really drawn together as a team," explained Nuse, whose 12-1 club won its third straight Mercer County Title earlier this fall in addition to taking the Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) crown.
"They put it on the line for each other. It's easier to go the extra mile when you feel others are depending on you."
In assessing her team's triumph, Nuse also pointed to its ability to roll with punches. "I have to say it's been a great group in being flexible and dealing with the some of the stuff we had to deal with this fall," said Nuse, who is in her 17th year guiding the Raiders.
"When we were hit with injuries, there was no problem with shifting players around. Last week when the state opening round was moved from Wednesday to Friday, that didn't affect them. No matter what happened, they were flexible."
With that combination of camaraderie and adaptability, it's no wonder that Wright and Licciardello did what they could to help the Raiders lift the Prep A trophy for the first time.
