G-Men causing racket

BLUEFIELD, Va. — It was a dream season for the Graham boys tennis team.

The G-Men won the Southwest District and Region IV titles last season, advancing to the Group AA state semifinals.

They’re back — minus a pair of key players — and hoping for more, continuing Monday with a key SWD home match against Richlands.

“We have a young team that is working hard, we’re trying to develop our doubles teams right now,” Graham boys tennis coach Roscoe Warner said. “I think we have a good chance of winning the district.

“It’s going to be a struggle if we win the district to get through the regionals because we do have a young team and they are in the development stage right now.”

Yet, Warner says not to count them out.

“I’m not going to put anything past these guys,” Warner said. “It depends on how they play.”

That includes sophomore Alexander Azzo and senior Walter Crickmer, a duo that’s also proven to be a good match in doubles.

“They’re both dynamic players, there’s no doubt about it,” Warner said. “I’m trying to get them to be a little bit more aggressive with their play because they both have two excellent games.

“One thing they’re lacking is just being more aggressive and once they develop their aggressive instinct I think they’re going to shock a lot of people .”

The G-Men pulled a few shockers last season, rolling all the way to Virginia Tech and the state tournament.

“That was a lot of fun,” Azzo said. “I always have fun with tennis, that’s all anybody tries to do with this sport, that’s the most important thing.”

“Last year was a blast,” added Crickmer. “Going up to Virginia Tech and playing at state, it was a good experience to have.”

Warner hopes that experience, along with a difficult early schedule, can spur the G-Men (6-4, 0-2) through the district matches that remain with Richlands, Tazewell and Carroll County.

“One thing I like is how (Graham athletic director) Doug Marrs did our schedule,” Warner said. “We had all our tough matches during the first part of the year and really that prepared us for our district matches.”

Azzo, the top seed, and Crickmer are joined in the regular rotation by a trio of sophomores in Ahmad Khokar, Geoff Kade and Matthew Hurt.

That youth and its potential has Warner excited about the future.

“I think they’re still in a learning stage, some of these guys were freshmen last year and they still have a lot to learn,” Warner said. “By the time these sophomores are seniors, they’re really going to be awesome.”

Senior Ben Rash is also in the singles rotation, while Alex Marrs and Khokar join Azzo-Crickmer and Kade-Hurt as doubles team.

Other contributors include Nelson Linkous, Will Clements, Patrick Staton and Jeremy Rash.

“All of them have a lot of experience, but they played at a lower ranking at that particular time last year,” Warner said. “Walter has probably made the most progress over the year and Azzo has come along a great deal this year also.”

Azzo feels the same way about his team, which is missing Chad Brady — now a sophomore at Bluefield — and Moiz Dawood, who has graduated.

“I think everyone has done a real fantastic job this year,” Azzo said. “Especially since lot of people are playing this year in positions that they weren’t playing last year and they’re doing very well at it.”

“The team has been doing pretty good, we’ve won a few, lost a few, but everything has been pretty good,” added Crickmer. “Everybody has improved over the summer.”

Azzo, who was the second seed behind Brady last season, has more responsibility now, but has been eager to accept his new role.

“There’s a little more pressure this year. Last year I was No. 2 and I think I have improved a lot over the summer and so has Walt and everybody else on our team,” said Azzo, who thrives on consistency, shot placement and mental focus. “We lost two players last year so that has put a little bit more pressure on everybody, but everybody’s game has improved.”

While Azzo has played the game most of his life, Crickmer didn’t start until his freshman season, and that was to keep from being bored.

“We would just go out to have fun since there’s not a whole lot to do in Bluefield,” Crickmer said. “That’s how I got started, just recreational.”

He was, admittedly, ‘horribly bad’, but has improved to where he hopes to play tennis at Concord.

“I hope to play tennis, but I can’t wait to go to college,” Crickmer said. “I love it, we have a great coach and I love playing tennis.”

That duo has also thrived as a doubles team.

“He’s been really great. I think we have a lot of chemistry as a team together and we’re playing together really well,” said Azzo, who also wrestles, runs cross country and has played soccer in the past. “We trust each other and I think that is really important for a doubles team.

“You can put two great singles players and put them together and they can be a bad doubles team.”

“Alex is a great player,” added Crickmer, seconds before raindrops ruined a Graham practice session last week. “It’s a lot of fun playing with him.”

That duo hopes the fun will continue with a few more wins.

“I definitely think we’ve got a really good shot at winning district,” Azzo said. “Abingdon is real good this year in the regional, but I think everybody on the team has shown that when they’re playing good, there’s not a lot of people that can beat them so I think we’ve got a real good chance.”

—Contact Brian Woodson

at bwoodson@bdtonline.com

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