New Mexico 2016 boys and girls tennis preview

Class 5A Albuquerque Academy has put together one of the most powerful boys tennis teams in New Mexico history this spring, while the girls side is dominated by the return of the state champion and runner-up singles players in Class 6A.

The Academy boys already have set state records by winning the championship for the last 13 years and 19 overall. Coach Ray Jaramillo has won seven of those titles with just two losses in the last seven years. He not only returns his top six players, but also has added a superstar who immediately became the team's No. 1 player.

The highly-touted newcomer is junior Malachi Coleman, who has not played high school tennis previously. He has spent each year working the USTA circuit and is ranked No. 35 in the Southwest. In fact, 10 of the team's top 12 players are ranked in the Southwest.

Jaramillo told MaxPreps that adding Coleman to his already-loaded squad "is great — awesome. Since he's been a freshman, he's been the best kid in the state. We have probably the best team in the state and one of the best teams in the history of New Mexico."

The Chargers' No. 2 and 3 players, freshman twins Coleton and Hunter Hootman, won the 5A state doubles crown as eighth-graders. Their only loss during the season was to teammates.

Farmington has placed second to the Academy during the last five years and will be strong again with three top returnees — junior Ned Merrion, sophomore Nate Benson and senior Elijah Larson.

Larry Larson, who has posted an outstanding 557-145 record during 39 years as head coach at Farmington, said, "We can't beat Albuquerque Academy. Neither can anybody else," he laughed. "They're just that good."

Los Alamos is another 5A contender with four of its top six returning. They include junior George Margevicius at No. 1 and junior Andrew Tang at No. 4. Freshman Thomas Chadwick has moved from No. 5 to 3 and sophomore Junseo Kim from six to five. Senior Andrew Aboshousha has vaulted Into the No. 2 slot.

Coach Lloyd Wilton agreed that Academy junior Malachi Coleman "is the top player in the whole state. He's been training since he was a kid. He's a great, great player."

Jumping up to Class 6A, defending state champion La Cueva (Albuquerque) has a good chance to repeat and its No. 1 player, senior Gavin Korsan, is the favorite to capture the singles crown. Junior Kyler Kunzler is a strong performer at No. 2. Veteran coach Dick Johnson, who has won 12 of the last 15 large-school tennis titles, has posted a superb 302-50 record in 25 years.

The Hobbs Eagles return four of their top six players and have a very competitive balance with No. 1 Chaz Schoonover now playing No. 4 and No. 3 Sager Patel, a junior, playing No. 1. Senior Noah Turrubiates is at No. 2 and sophomore Ryan Jimenez is at No. 3. Coach Travis Eggleton says, "We like to throw the dice" with the weekly challenge matches.

Mayfield (Las Cruces) counts on three returnees — senior Gavin Hill, senior Michael Walker and junior Max Cunningham.

Carlsbad has four of its top six players again this spring, paced by No. 1 player Adam Overstreet, a sophomore. Overstreet and senior Daniel Miller reached the state quarterfinals last year in doubles. The Cavemen can't ever be counted out because coach Ryan Galindo has won three boys and five girls state championships in 20 years.

In Class A-4A, Robertson (Las Vegas) is defending champion and favored to repeat, led by defending singles champion Warren Fulgenzi, a senior who posted a 28-0 record last spring. The son of head coach Warren Fulgenzi Sr., he had a 27-1 record and was 5A runner-up as a sophomore while playing for Santa Fe.

The Cardinals also will count on freshman Andres Garcia, who was third in the state last year, and senior Ali Shabaneh.

Bosque (Albuquerque) returns four of its top six players, including defending doubles state champions Joshua Hood and Will Katzman, both seniors.

New Mexico Military Institute (Roswell) and St. Michael's (Santa Fe) also should field strong teams this spring.

The new Institute coach, Will Cavin, welcomed back the No. 4-5-6 players, juniors Luis Fontes, Spencer Treat and Allen DeGroot, but has added three sophomore transfers from Mexico. They are Farid Yunes, No. 1 now, Francisco Francisco Saracho, No. 2, and Jose Salazar, No. 4.

St. Michael's returns its top four players and five of its top six. The leaders are senior Will McDermott, son of coach Drew McDermott, at No. 1, senior Ian Watson at No. 2, sophomore John Anderson at No. 3 and senior Nick Hanson at No. 4.

GIRLS DIVISIONS

Class 6A probably will be the most competitive.

Albuquerque has a shot at retaining last year's state championship with four of its top six coming back. Coach Becky Lee counts on last year's No. 1, junior Abigail Nielsen, and No. 2, sophomore Madelynn Chavez, as her nucleus. Junior Skye Dorato and senior Capt. Lucy Stebbins are other key veterans.

La Cueva (Albuquerque) is very deep and boasts last year's state singles runner-up, junior Sarianna Kuuttila, who has committed to Michigan State University. Kuuttila teams with junior Christine Roerick at No. 1 doubles. Other key players are freshman Mikayla Herrera and senior captain Becca Hucke.

Eldorado (Albuquerque) will build around three returnees, including defending state singles champion Ivana Corley, still just a sophomore. She will get plenty of help from juniors Alison Clark, who plays with her at No. 1 doubles, and Jennah Marquez.
In Class 5A, Albuquerque Academy may be the team leader and has the defending singles champion, senior Melissa Pick, a University of Wisconsin recruit who currently is sidelined due to a hand/forearm injury. Coach Amy Badger calls the 5-foot-3 mighty mite "so powerful. She is very good, especially for her size. She hits so efficiently."

Farmington and Los Alamos also are expected to be very competitive teams.

In Class A-4A, Robertson (Las Vegas) has won the last two state titles and returns its top three players. No. 1 Brandelyn Fulgenzi, a sophomore, is the defending singles champion. She is the daughter of head coach Warren Fulgenzi Sr. Her sister, eighth-grader Lauren Fulgenzi, is playing No. 4 at this time.

The head coach's nieces, junior Jaci Fulgenzi and sophomore Jenese Fulgenzi, play No. 2 and 3 singles.