Salem netters surging after rugged start

  If Salem's tennis team was a stock, it would no doubt be classified as a blue chip these days.

  Following a rough start that pitted the Rocks against two of the most formidable high school tennis programs in the state -- Northville and Novi -- Salem has been on a Roger Federer-like roll.

  Since falling 8-1 to Novi on Sept. 9, Salem has gone 3-0 in dual meets heading into Thursday's match against Lakeland and it has won a pair of weekend tournaments: the Plymouth Invitational on Sept. 6 and the Monroe Invitational on Sept. 20.

  "I like the enthusiasm of this team," said Salem coach Bill Nelson. "We have quite a few guys who play year-round. They take it seriously, but they have fun, too."

  Salem is led by junior No. 1 singles player Brett Foster, whose brother Brock plays No. 1 doubles and serves as a co-captain with No. 2 doubles player Andy Steinman. Brett Foster has earned a pair of bronze medals in tournaments while giving his No. 1 singles opponents fits with his wear-you-down style.

  "Brett is just a grinder," said Nelson. "When we played Northville (on Sept. 1), all the other matches were well into the second set, but Brett's match was 4-2 in the first. He's in such good shape and he never gives up on a point. He wears his opponents down."

  Foster's most impressive victory this season was a three-set triumph over Carson Crandall, Novi's highly regarded No. 1 singles player.

  Salem's No. 2 player is freshman dynamo Jacob Scott, a hard-hitting, year-round player whose poise elevates beyond his years.

  "Jacob plays in a lot of national tournaments during the off-season, so not much fazes him," Nelson said.

  Scott won a silver medal at the Monroe Invitational.

  Junior Dion Walker returns as Salem's No. 3 singles player following a solid sophomore campaign. Walker sparked the Rocks' first-place showing at the Plymouth tournament by taking gold at No. 3 singles. He followed that up with a second-place effort in Monroe.

  John Kang -- one of only two seniors in the Rocks' starting line-up --is a consistently strong player who picked up a bronze medal at the Monroe tournament.

  Salem's No. 1 doubles team is made up of Brock Foster and fellow junior captain Josh Perrin. The duo took gold at both the Plymouth and Monroe events.

  "They play extremely well together," Nelson emphasized. "Brock was our No. 2 singles player last year, and he played very well, winning over 20 matches. But he screwed up a rib someone and came to me and said he couldn't do singles right now. He's stepped into No. 1 doubles and has done a tremendous job with Josh."

  Steinman and Michael Keum have more than held down the fort at No. 2 doubles. The highlight of their season thus far came in Monroe when they went a perfect 3-0 to win gold medals.

  Keum is an incredible story. The freshman didn't pick up a racket for the first time until he was in eighth grade, yet he's climbed up a the Rocks' ladder at an amazing rate.

  Cody Hazen, the only senior starter besides Kang, and Alek Zultowski, form a formidable No. 3 doubles unit, while Zenik Pelekh and Greg Selewski have been tough to beat at No. 4 dubs.

  A pair of tandems have shared time at No. 5 doubles: the teams of Karl Allan and Tyler Foley (both sophomores) and Elliot Stout and Vishnu Rajandran, both juniors.

  "We have some other players emerging," said Nelson, hinting at the program's admirable depth.
 

Ed Wright can be reached at info@plymouthcantonsports.com or (734) 453-1980.