Carson boys tennis looks to reload

The Carson High boys tennis team established a level of success last season that it will be hard pressed to equal this year.

Carson lost much of its nucleus from last year's squad that advanced to the Northern 4A semifinals where it gave eventual Northern 4A champion Galena all it could handle before losing 11-7. Also last year, Brad Cobler and Bryt Lewis were able to advance to the NIAA 4A State Championships in doubles.

But while the Senators have lost quite a bit, the cupboard isn't exacly empty, either. Carson has a large number of players returning who have been in the program and has 40 players in all.

"We just have to kind of reload," Carson coach Pat Houlihan said. "It's going to take a couple of matchs to get things going.

Hopefully they'll step up. What we try to do is develop and try to get better. There's another corp that's got to move in."

Cobler returns and should team with another player in doubles, sophomore Jordan Rogers, who had plenty of experience last year as a freshman. The duo has the potential to have the same kind of success that Cobler and Lewis had.

Carson's No. 1 singles player from the past two years, Spencer Brinson, a junior, also returns. Another player with significant experience who returns is Ben Henningsen, who should be in the lineup at either singles or doubles. "He looks pretty good," Houlihan said.

Another potential doubles team is Tyler and Alex Wing. They are among the players who don't have that much match experience, but have been a part of the program and are expected to make much more of a contribution this year.

Two other players who should fit in that category arr James Pelz and Spencer Trapp. Other players who return in the program and could be counted on more than they have been in the past include Gordon Lee, Tom Hollenbeck-Pringle, Rick Nyguen, Jordan Miller and Ian Gentner.

Houlihan said the program has been helped in recent years by more players competing in tournaments over the summer and that continued this year. "That's how they get the experience, the jitters out," he said.

Carson will open its season on August 28 vs. Fallon.

•Contact Charles Whisnand at cwhisnand@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1214