“In order to play for the team, you have to beat your teammates, and that’s tough because it pits teammates against each other,” said junior Myles Olsen, who has been fighting to keep his spot at sixth singles. “Surprisingly, it’s more pressure to beat my teammates than it is to play against another team, because when you’re playing against another team, you’re not playing for the fate of your spot.”
For Coach Betsy Tyskowski, that competition at the lower positions is key to Oakton’s success. The Cougars emphasize their fourth, fifth and sixth singles as positions they can clean up if their teammates lose matches on the upper courts. It’s one explanation for how Oakton won the 2021 Virginia Class 6 team title despite not capturing individual tournament titles.
“It is heavy duty challenging every single day in practice,” Tyskowski said. “The lineup isn’t done, and it won’t be done until the last regular season match. The kids have to know the window is open still. It’s stressful, but it’s also really exciting.”
After an 8-1 win over South Lakes on Friday, Oakton is 6-0 heading into its spring break.
Olsen says for all the stress and intensity on the practice courts, the Cougars are good about supporting one another when up against opposing schools.
“Before every match, we go, ‘Guys, I don’t care how much it takes, our vocal cords, they’ve got to be completely destroyed by the end of this match.’ ”
At 6-0, the Washington-Liberty Generals are off to the program’s best start in recent memory. Longtime coach Jimmy Carrasquillo has had plenty of great teams at the Arlington school, including a 2016 state title winner, but he knows a start like this is rare.
“They’re just hungry,” Carrasquillo said. “A lot of them really haven’t had a taste of a full season. Now that they finally have one, they’re ready for it.”