Friends Academy Captures Long Island Division II Title, Looks Ahead to NYS Championships

In search of its third straight Long Island Small School (Division II) title, Friends Academy found itself in a hole against Ross School on Friday afternoon. The Quakers dropped the first set in four of the five flights, and had to dig deep if it wanted to pull off the three-peat.

“We came into the match today knowing it was going to be a battle right from the get go,” said Friends Academy head coach Owen Kassimir. “I told them that, and they knew it.”

The one match where Friends Academy did not drop the opening set was at first doubles, as Hudson Lee & Steven Seviroli won 6-4, 6-4 to give their team the early advantage. 

And on the remaining courts, the Quakers leaned into their championship experience to launch comebacks. Bryan Bin lost his first set 3-6, but turned the tide by losing just four games the rest of the way, securing a 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 victory at second singles.

On the next court over, Bin’s teammate Will Bohner was in a similar position as he lost his first set 2-6. But Bohner played excellent tennis in the second and third sets, dropping just two games of his own to complete a 2-6, 6-0, 6-2 win in the first singles position, and clinching Friends Academy’s third straight Long Island title. 

“He was playing amazing tennis in that first set, no unforced errors and taking a lot of my balls early. I was putting it right in his strike zone and he took advantage,” said Bohner. “I had to get the ball higher, and do more attacking and coming into the net, and show him that I wasn’t afraid to attack. I made sure to get my first serves in and just made my shots.”

Playing side-by-side, Bohner said he had a sense that Bin was making a comeback in his match, and that helped pick up his energy. 

“Bryan never yells, so when I heard him yelling in the second set I knew he was playing well,” said Bohner. “He was loud, I started getting loud, and we were just feeding off of each other.”

The second and third doubles matches did not finish as the overall team match had been settled. Friends Academy’s Henry Koelmel & Vedant Rawat led 2-6, 7-6(5), 5-3 at second doubles, and Blake Doan & Vir Singh of Friends Academy were ahead 6-7(5), 6-3, 2-0 at third doubles when the contests were halted. 

Now Friends Academy prepares for its third consecutive appearance at the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Team Championships, with one goal in mind: bring home the State title. 

“We have been there and we know what it takes,” Bohner said. “We’ve all gotten a lot better, we have some new additions, and we’re really excited for the chance to get over the hump. I think we can definitely win it this year.”

The NYSPHSAA Championships are set for Friday, June 13 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens.

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