ELHS Boys Tennis Team Looks to Build on Last Season’s Success

Despite losing four key players to graduation in 2023, the East Lansing High School boys tennis team heads into 2024 with great anticipation.  

Starting his fourth season as the head coach, Cody Cross carries an optimistic air about him as he discusses the upcoming season.  

“The team chemistry is going to be the best ever, because it’s just a great group of friends, and they know each other very well,” Cross said. 

In 2023, the team made it to the state tournament led by Iskandarkhuja Ismoil (#1 singles), Bryce Aho (#1 doubles), Grant Pennock (#2 doubles), and Mason Briere (#3 doubles). Cross noted that this talent is going to be missed.  

“You don’t replace those guys,” Cross said. “You find the next four guys up.”  

Find them, he has.  

Last year, the team greatly benefited from the contributions of Ismoil, an exchange student from Tajikistan. This year the team hopes to get a similar boost with the addition of Stefan Wojcik, who just arrived from Poland for his year as an East Lansing student. Cross is confident that Wojcik will be an important contributor. 

“His perspective of tennis will be different from the rest of the team which will be a huge bonus for the other guys to learn from and vice verse,” he said.

The 2024 team is dominated by seniors who have played for Cross since he arrived at East Lansing. While the lineup will not be set for another week, there will be strength and experience in all 12 varsity slots.

When pressed to identify the player or players he is most excited to see on the court, he thought for a full 30 seconds before answering. 

“I have a lot of guys who worked really hard all summer,” he said. “So all of them.”  

While that might seem like coachspeak, for Cross it was a genuine assessment of the depth of the team.

In assessing the upcoming season, Cross noted that Okemos will likely provide the greatest competition in the conference with the large number of regular tournament players they field. He also noted that Grand Ledge and Dewitt look to be much improved.  

For Cross, the tougher the competition, the better the Trojans will become by state tournament time. He is still trying to schedule a non-conference match against one of the perennial powers from Oakland County.  

“It’s good for our guys to see that level, even if we don’t beat them,” he said.

Cross was quick to point out the team’s strength is connected to the families that make up the program.  He said the families are the best thing about coaching at East Lansing, noting that they are welcoming and supportive.  

“There doesn’t seem to be a lot of the political games you might see at other schools,” Cross said, grateful that the parents trust him to do what’s right for their sons.

One of the players Cross is counting on to fill the shoes of the graduated players is Junior Bodhi Alwin. Alwin broke his back before the season last year and looks at 2024 as his redemption year.  

Two other players moving into the starting lineup this year drew praise from their coach and several of their teammates for the work they have put in. Gerritt Garcia and Will Taylor have only been playing tennis for a couple of years, but they have put in countless hours in camps, lessons and extra work after scheduled practices to earn their way into the lineup.  

They will join returning starters Miles Johnson (Jr), Sacha Karp (Sr) , Kailen Foster (Jr) and Nat Hickner (Sr). Geoffrey Deng (Sr), who spent time both on junior varsity and varsity teams in 2023, rounds out the starting lineup.

Every good program needs a junior varsity team that can push for playing time on varsity. Injuries happen and without some talent at the freshman and sophomore level to fill in, the entire season can be put in jeopardy. 

Sophomores Donald Harley and Teddy Greenwalt are among a talented group of underclassmen who hope to be contributing at some point this year. Harley has the goal of playing at least one match at the varsity level this year.

As of today, the school is still looking for a junior varsity coach. Cross is handling both jobs currently, but stressed the importance of finding some help.  

“Anyone who is interested in coaching, whether they have a lot of tennis [experience] or not, but want to work with hard-working, well-behaved kids, should apply,” he said. Candidates should reach out to Athletic Director Nikki Norris.

The varsity team will be led this year by senior captains Charlie Conlin, J.D. Hawthorne, Jonny Kalt and Henry Mahler. Like his coach, Conlin celebrated the close relationships the teammates share with each other.  

“Winning is fun, but it’s not everything,” Conlin said. “It’s my senior year. It’s most important to have fun with my teammates.”

Conlin had just completed a very competitive seeding match against Hawthorne. The two are competing for the team’s top singles slot. When asked about how their friendship holds up under the intense pressure of such a competition, they both quickly noted that during those matches they don’t see a friend across the net. 

“They’re my opponent for the next hour and then they go back to being my friend,” Hawthorne said.

Fellow captains Kalt and Mahler echoed the importance of preserving the team chemistry while pushing each other to excel. Mahler noted that he tries to lead by example by working his hardest during every drill and every match. 

“At the end of every match and every practice I want to have the feeling that I left everything out there,” he said.  

Mahler pointed to the “obnoxious energy” he brings to the team, saying he is not afraid to call out teammates who aren’t trying as hard as he thinks they can.

That is the sort of leadership Cross is counting on to carry the team back to the state tournament in 2024.

This story was updated to correct misspellings.