Boys Tennis: Seniors Hope to Leave Legacy of Spirit

Before the Oakton High boys tennis team defeated Westfield 7-2 on Thursday, they took the time to honor its seven graduating members — a group that transformed the team dynamic in a largely individual sport.

When Kyle Delgado was named a captain for his junior season last year, he recruited two friends to the team — Michael Filapponi and manager Chris Abdullah — and with them started to slowly change the way the team perceived itself. 

The three have joined with the other four seniors, Kevin Qian, Danny Naja and Delgado's co-captains Alex Tyskowski and Pat Cary, to create a pride in the boys tennis program that has also changed the school's perception of the team.

"I'm going to miss changing the face of tennis as a sport in high school," Delgado said. "It's more well-known around the school now."

Their raucous cheering at matches has coincided with the program's best record (8-2) since at least 2007, which they credit to their ability to have fun while competing, whether its against each other at practice or against other teams. 

And their team spirit has proven to be infectious, with other teams attempting to match their enthusiasm.

"We saw it at Centreville the other day," Delgado said. "They were definitely trying to cheer right back, but we, of course, were better at it. Other teams are trying to do it, but they're not as loud as us. But it's good they're trying."

Coach Betsy Tyskowski said she has enjoyed seeing the seniors lead the team to such a unified force.

"It's really kind of a crazy group of kids," Tyskowski said. "There's so much camaraderie even though they're all so different individually."

But that unity has helped bring out personalities and create friendships that may never have come forth without tennis.

"Tennis did change my life a lot, actually. I've definitely changed since coming on the team. I was really shy and sheltered before," said Abdullah, who serves as the team manager but has taken advantage of his time with the team to improve his own game. "They brought me out of my shell."

Naja, the team's No. 1 player, will be playing tennis for George Mason University next year. Abdullah, Delgado and Filapponi will take their larger-than-life personalities to Virginia Tech, while Qian and Cary pursue degrees at the University of Virginia. Alex Tyskowski will attend Christopher Newport University in the fall.

"All of our leaders are seniors, and we only have three juniors. So it's going to be a young team next year," Tyskowski said. "But it'll be good. We have so much talent with the younger players, and I already know of some kids who will be at Oakton as freshmen next year. I think we'll have a solid program."

But win or lose, the seniors hope the spirit they've injected into the team will be a legacy that sticks with the younger players. 

"We want to leave a legacy that the other tennis kids strive to achieve, which is basically being loud and going against the grain of what tennis normally is in high school," Delgado said.

The Cougars will compete in the Concorde District tournament starting today. They have also already qualified for a berth in the Northern Region tournament.