Congratulations to the Thomas Edison Tennis team, they triumphed through adversity and surpassed all expectations of how well they would do this season. This team had a record of 7-3 during the regular season competing for the Queens B1 league championship. They were ranked division champions for the B division and brought back the Banner to Thomas Edison, something that hasn’t been done in 20 years. That is an impressive achievement, and they did not stop here. They continued to play hard and with great teamwork they made it all the way to the quarter finals of the playoffs. Their season ultimately ended in a 4-1 loss to FDA Highschool. This loss so close to the Championship is only motivation for them to return next year stronger and better than they were before. 

I got the chance to speak with some of the players on the Edison tennis team like Shawn Ramrattan,  Ihsan Ahmed, and Jaewon Yoon. They all expressed to me that their favorite part of the season was the amazing energy and teamwork, and creating new bonds and friendships with fellow teammates. Shawn Ramrattan said “ These guys are not friends to me there like brothers.” From this you can see just how good the chemistry was on the team. The players said the Coach of the Tennis team Mr. Wang heavily encouraged them to join the team, having faith that something magical would happen. Ihsan Ahmed said “When tennis was introduced in Edison, I never thought about even trying out. Because Mr Wang knew I had some experience, he encouraged me to try out. And from there on, I gained motivation again, taking this sport very seriously. I really thank Mr. Wang for bringing me back to this sport.” Mr. Wang had a great impact on his players. The success of the season was not expected, all of the players were joining the team for the first time. They had the mindset to just play hard and never give up. They started off the season with a win and continued on a winning streak. 

All of these players plan to rejoin the team next year. The player whose story really caught my attention was Ihsan. His parents pushed him to play tennis since he was 4, but he wasn’t passionate about the sport so he eventually quit after 5-6 months of playing. Due to the creation of the Tennis team and Mr. Wang’s motivation was that he began playing tennis again. Mr. Wang has definitely did a great job Coaching his players and setting them up for an amazing season. 

The last Tennis team of Thomas Edison had only one win and this year’s team achieved that and more. The next season is going to be a stronger and better team ready to go further than the year before. With these players returning to the team and them having great team chemistry, this Edison Tennis team is bound for a successful season. I can’t wait to see what they are going to accomplish next year.