Brighton girls varsity tennis continues run of dominance; look to make more history

BRIGHTON, N.Y. (WHEC) — For the first time, New York is holding girls’ tennis state tournaments in team play. They only had individual matches in the past. So, when Brighton won their seventh consecutive Section V title, it gave them the chance to keep going.

The Bruins are down in Queens where they’ll play in the Class A. State semifinals tomorrow. They win that and they’ll play for all the marbles in the title game.

This is a group that just sent five players to individual states out of the nine that played in the field. They’ve got four freshmen (Leyla Tozin, Zoe Sheehan, Ella Hall, and Samantha Kotz) on the team alongside some others who’ve played varsity since eighth grade.

Head Coach Steve Falter said they’ve been playing the game even longer and have always had the "it" factor.

"These girls have been playing tennis since they were seven, eight years old," Steve Falter said. "Their drive is phenomenal, their drive in the court, their drive in the classroom. A lot of these girls would play tournaments circuits in the summer so they’re used to tough competition. They’re used to calming their nerves down. When they struggle, they learn from their mistakes and it’s like they can apply it when they need it."