Cathedral Prep's depth on display during District 10's boys team tennis tournament
Cathedral Prep’s Gavin Ferretti began this week as the winner of District 10’s Class 2A boys singles tennis tournament.
Teammates Ty Hulick and Mike Ferraro followed as its victors for doubles.
That the trio weren’t No. 1 starters for the Ramblers’ appearance in the district’s May 9 team tournament exemplified the across-the-roster talent available to coach Pat Grab.
Prep won each of its five semifinal matches against Greenville by 6-0, 6-0 scores at Westwood Racquet Club. The Ramblers also blanked Fairview 5-0 in the ensuing championship dual.
The Tigers fared better vs. Prep than Greenville did. They won four games over 10 sets.
“This speaks to the depth of our team and our program the last couple years,” Grab said. “I’m real proud of that.”
Freshmen Bradley Ng and Charbel Moubarak bracketed Ferretti, a junior, as the Ramblers’ starters for singles.
Colin Troutman and Cameron Grieshaber represented Prep for its No. 1 doubles matches. They started ahead of Hulick and Ferraro, who upset Troutman and Grieshaber in the district’s 2A title match.
Fairview advanced to the May 9 final with a 4-1 semifinal win over the Hickory Hornets.
Jai Prabhu, Ayush Bharath and Tegan Rucks swept the singles matches for the Tigers. Their fourth point came from Tanmay Sharma and Ryder Harvey in No. 2 doubles.
Trojans’ mixed results
The team portion of McDowell’s boys tennis season concluded after duals against separate flights of Dragons.
The first occurred in the district’s Class 3A final. The Trojans beat Warren 4-1.
David Mikotowicz, Gridley Wright and Noah Hardesty won their singles matches. Dan Idzik and Christian Neubert provided insurance as victors in No. 2 doubles.
However, McDowell’s celebratory vibe lasted less than two hours.
Taylor Allderdice, representing District 8, defeated the Trojans 4-1 in a PIAA subregion dual. Those Dragons, as the Pittsburgh City League’s lone 3A program, were required to qualify for states through action at Westwood.
Mikotowicz accounted for McDowell’s lone team point. His freshman season will conclude as District 10’s 3A singles player at states.
Question answered
Ng, despite his freshman status, was a frequent No. 1 singles starter during Prep’s regular season.
That caused curiosity regarding his absence from the district’s singles and doubles tournaments.
Ng answered why after Prep’s 2A team trophy ceremony.
“I committed to playing in a (USTA) doubles tournament in Michigan the same weekend of the (PIAA) tournament,” he said. “If I (won) districts, I’d be taking away someone else’s chance of going to states.”
For years, there was anticipation Prep’s current lineup would list Bradley Ng and his older brother.
Jonah Ng would have been a senior for the 2025 Ramblers. However, he opted to take cyber classes so he could participate in advanced USTA training on Pittsburgh area courts.
Jonah Ng, at least as a freshman, will play for Division I St. Francis University. The Loretto school recently announced it will revert to Division III athletics by the fall of 2026.
Bradley Ng said Jonah offered advice ahead of his Prep debut.
“He said varsity (tennis) was a different atmosphere, especially at states,” Bradley Ng said. “You’ve really got to focus when you walk out there.”
What’s next
McDowell’s elimination meant Westwood will only host one PIAA team dual on May 13. Prep (15-3) will take on South Park (10-2) in a 2A first-rounder at noon.
Grab was aware the Eagles are more talented than a normal District 7 third seed. The suburban Pittsburgh school was favored to win the WPIAL 2A title, but lost to fourth seed North Catholic in the semifinals.
South Park recovered and defeated Hampton 3-2 in that tournament’s third-place dual.
The Eagles or Ramblers will advance to the main portion of the state bracket. All remaining rounds are scheduled May 16-17 at Hershey Racquet Club.
Contact Mike Copper at mcopper@timesnews.com. Follow him on X @ETNcopper.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Cathedral Prep boys tennis team wins District 10’s Class 2A tournament
