The boys' tennis team is surprised that they keep winning . . . hardly the attitude you expect from young athletes.

"This season is going better than I expected it to so far," said senior Jonathan Bickerton.

So far, the team posted a positive 3-2 record.

Under the leadership of coaching legend Riley Baker who has coached Bobcat tennis since the mid-1980’s, Beaver Area has defeated Mars, Ambridge, and Beaver Falls, while losing against Blackhawk and Central Valley.

In order for a team to record a win, they must win three out of the five individual matches: two doubles matches and three singles matches.

According to the Bobcat team's captain, senior Jeff Allison, the team was close to winning against Blackhawk.

"I had lost my match while [junior] Grady Johnson won, so we needed at least two of our matches to win. It was very tense watching them all at once," Allison recalled.

The team believes it owes part of its success to the relative unpopularity of organized tennis in Beaver County. According to Allison, Ambridge and Beaver Falls both had to forfeit some of their individual matches due to the fact that they don’t field large enough teams to replace players who are unable to play.

Currently, Beaver Area’s team roster contains the minimum number of players required by the WPIAL, but has not had any problems with playing all their matches.

Check back with the ECHO May 3 to find out how Beaver fared at MACs competition held on the Bobcat courts April 9!