Serving a new season

Softball or coed tennis, anyone? For the last 10 years, the female athletes of Girard Academic Music Program had to pick one spring sport or the other.

Now they can play both, thanks to a new fall sport at the magnet high school: girls’ tennis.

The season change is a result of the Philadelphia Public League teams now being members of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association. The state’s governing body for high-school athletics holds the girls’ state tennis championships in the fall, while the boys’ titles are contested in the spring.

When practices started Aug. 16, GAMP coach Jann Hoeltzel had 17 girls come out for the team, including nine softball players. Many of the athletes were picking up a tennis racket for the first time, but they showed no fear, the coach said.

"They stuck with it and really did well."

Senior All-Public pitcher Angelica Malatino and junior teammates Jackie Mellett and Dana Anello are among the softball players who became two-sport athletes.

"They jumped at the opportunity to play both sports," said Hoeltzel, now in her fifth season with the team.

Unlike softball, tennis is an individual sport, with seven separate matches. There are no fielders to catch fly balls or cleanup hitters to drive in the winning run.

If the scenario created more pressure, the Pioneers’ 5-3 regular-season mark didn’t show it. They entered last Monday’s finale tied with Masterman for the AA Division lead, but lost 6-1.

The opponents met again in last Thursday’s PIAA District XII Public League AA semifinals, and this time the Pioneers won two matches. Even though Masterman qualified for the state tournament, Hoeltzel said she was extremely pleased with her team’s performance.

"What they discovered is that Masterman isn’t invincible," the coach said. "Many of the matches were close, and the girls saw they could compete at that level. It’s something they can carry into next season."

GAMP, being the smallest high school in the city with an enrollment of 240, is always considered the underdog. GAMP’s teams aren’t expected to compete against Central High and its 2,200 students, let alone other schools with larger enrollments.

And while the Lancers defeated the Pioneers in the regular season, most of the matches were close. The modest South Philly squad did defeat larger AAA schools Frankford, Lincoln, Olney and Washington.

The Pioneers were equally competitive in their 10 seasons as a coed program. Four years after joining the Public League, GAMP took its first Silver Division tennis title in 1998 with an 11-0 mark. The school also went undefeated in the Silver last season, but lost in the playoffs.

The players maintained that winning mentality during the summer by showing up at FDR Park at 10 a.m. for practices. When they headed to the shore for vacation, their tennis rackets went with them. If they had afterschool jobs during the season, they rearranged their schedules to make practices and games.

Former male teammates Pat Diamond and Greg Severino, both seniors, also made the daily commitment as squad managers. Both went undefeated in division play during junior year, which has the Pioneers looking very promising for the spring season.

Meanwhile, their female counterparts are looking to use the past season as the foundation of future success. GAMP will need to replace the leadership of seniors Ashley Johns, Danielle Sammartino, Stefanie Romeo, Ashley Brady, Brittany Gagliardi and Dana DePasquale.

Junior Leslie DiVincenzo teamed up with Gagliardi to win one of the doubles playoff matches against Masterman, while Romeo and Malatino won the other contest.

Juniors Vicky Fera, DiVincenzo, Mellett and Anello and sophomore Kristin Davis will serve as the team nucleus next season. Hoeltzel is aiming to get the returning players signed up for off-season private tennis lessons to keep them in the game year-round.

The successful rookie season as an all-female team could be the start of a championship contender.

"The potential is there," Hoeltzel said. "They’ve come a long way."