Mendham Girls Tennis Team Focusing On Sectional Title

MENDHAM, NJ — The Mendham girls tennis team is currently 7-2 and has earned the No. 2 seed in the state tournament, which begins this week.

Mendham also earned a first-round bye in the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 2, Group 2 Tournament and will take on the winner of No. 7 Leonia and No. 10 Parsippany in the quarterfinal round on Oct. 5.

“I feel optimistic about the No. 2 seed,” said head coach Jessica Borkowski. “I am certainly glad for the bye week as we have had a grueling couple of matches, including the counties, and then we turned around and played Morris Knolls Monday and have Chatham on Wednesday. We needed a bit of a respite before the grind again. I think in order to advance in our section, we need the girls to remain healthy and positive. I am a strong believer in the power of positive thinking and setting goals. Our goal has always been the sectional title, and I think it is well within reach if we are focused and healthy in the next two weeks.”

Last year, Mendham posted an 11-2 record and advanced to the championship match of the NJSIAA Girls Tennis - Northwest A (Groups 3, 4) tournament.

“The team is performing very well overall; we are 5 - 1 in our conference, with our only loss to Chatham,” said Borkowski, who is in her third year as head coach after being the JV coach for two years before. “We also had a surprise win against Hightstown in the Westfield [Blue Devil] Tournament.”

Leading the team are senior Samantha Matkowski (first singles), a four-time varsity starter; senior Ella McFadden (second singles), a four-time varsity starter; and senior Whitney Romweber (part of the first doubles team), a three-year varsity player.

“Ella, Isabella [Wartchow Schmitt, third singles], and Sammy, my three singles players, are the girls I can rely on to get the points,” Borkowski said. “They are reliable, steady players, and they can always get the job done. My first doubles, Amelia [Paone] and Whitney, are also returning players, who had different partners last year―they are also just positive players who can be counted on to always be trying their hardest to get a point for the team.”

Mendham had a great showing at the Morris County Tournament, which was held last weekend.

“Second singles, Ella McFadden, and third singles, Isabella Wartchow Schmitt, won the county title over the weekend for their individual courts; Samantha Matkowski played in the semifinal at first singles, Amelia Paone and Whitney Romweber played in the semifinals at first doubles, and the team placed second in the county tournament,” Borkowski said.

The team is made up of experienced and new players.

“The team is five returning seniors, two returning varsity juniors, and two seniors that are new to the team,” Borkowski said. “We are an experienced varsity team, most of whom have been together for the last three to four years. It feels more like a family than a team because of how close they all are, and they have been friends since their freshman year.”

The team is facing a few challenges due to this point in the season and a competitive schedule.

“Injuries and sickness are always a challenge, especially at this point in the season,” Borkowski said. “We are more than halfway done with our season, and we are in the middle of a pretty hard ‘grind.’ We have had over three weekends of tournaments and state match play, in addition to our very competitive and tough conference. Not a single match can be counted on as a win, and it has come to a point where the girls are tired, their bodies are tired, but we know that we have to push through and try our best. They are great about it and really do go out every match with the goal and the intention to do what is best for the team.”

Borkowski emphasized the team’s overall goal for this season.

“Our goal for this year is to win our state section. That is what we are eyeing now, as we move into the second half of our season,” she said. “We have really been doing well and are excited for the future.”

Mendham is set to face Chatham on Wednesday, Morris Knolls on Oct. 6, Sparta on Oct. 7, Montville on Oct. 13, and Morristown on Oct. 15.