CONCORD – Just three days faraway from serving to the Thirty third-seeded Somerville boys tennis staff seize its first-ever playoff victory in opposition to Whitman-Hanson within the Div. 2 preliminary spherical, senior captain William Capuano knew what lay forward in opposition to top-seeded Concord-Carlisle within the first spherical on Monday.
But with commencement scheduled for later that night time and a flight to Oklahoma to affix the armed forces Tuesday morning, it virtually didn’t even matter.
By serving because the No. 1 singles participant in an eventual 5-0 loss to the Patriots in entrance of his household, it might be Capuano’s last match regardless earlier than his service for the U.S. Army Reserve started on Tuesday.
He was thrilled to play, and he was honored with a certificates of service from tennis liaison Carolyn Bohmiller.
But it was laborious.
“It’s tough, the last day,” Capuano stated. “Especially as the last time with my team. I already knew it was the last time with my team. … It’s really just an amazing team, and I’m so proud of all the kids that have done so much. Most of them had never played before getting here.”
It was a bittersweet second for Capuano to conclude his highschool profession, shortly earlier than dashing off to prepare for commencement. The bitter was dropping in straight units earlier than leaving his family and friends for Oklahoma. The candy was getting the prospect to play one final time after authentic scheduling virtually robbed him of the prospect to compete once more.
A scheduling battle virtually ruined the day, however head coach Michael Morgan and some others seized the day.
“A really easy decision,” Concord-Carlisle athletic director Aaron Joncas stated. “Amongst athletic directors in the state, there’s a lot of collaboration when there’s an important moment like this. We wanted to make sure that William had the chance to compete today. I think it’s a great demonstration of sportsmanship and an important lesson for our guys.”
Capuano doesn’t have a lot of a household historical past with the armed forces, so it caught his mom, Jenn Capuano, abruptly with blended feelings when he determined to enlist. But William, the nephew of former U.S. Rep. Mike Capuano, stated he needed to make use of the expertise to get assist paying for his education at Connecticut College, in addition to construct a more durable, disciplined character.
So, after serving 10 weeks at boot camp, he appears to be like to possibly play Div. 3 tennis at school whereas serving as a cargo specialist one weekend each month for the Army Reserve.
“People I know who had done it say it’s really tough, but it’s like the experience of your lifetime,” William stated.
His mom was additionally in her son’s nook with emotional help — with commencement, the Army, tennis and his teammates all colliding.
“He’s a captain, he’s put in the work and he wanted to play,” she stated. “This is his team. Somerville literally has two courts to play on, to practice on. How far this team has come … and Mr. Morgan has done so much for them.”
Source: www.bostonherald.com”