(story by Mike Zhe from Fosters.com)

NEWMARKET — How do you replace three decorated seniors who left school with a bunch of wins and one championship?

Mix in some talented guys from the other end of the class spectrum.

With freshmen holding two of the top three spots on its ladder, the Portsmouth High School boys tennis team opened its season with an 8-1 win over St. Thomas Aquinas on Friday, sweeping the singles in a match moved indoors to Great Bay Athletic Club.

“I saw it was snowing and I was thinking, ‘How are we going to have this match?’” said junior Jack Madden, who won 8-1 at No. 2 singles. “I’m glad we had it.”

Freshmen Ryan Porter (No. 1, 8-2) and Addison Bloom (No. 3, 8-2) cruised in singles, then teamed to win at No. 1 doubles, 8-3, a symbolic start to a new era.

“I think they’re going to push each other for the next four years, which is good.” said coach Anthony Sillitta.

The Clippers, who lost in the Division II final to Lebanon last year and last won a title in 2015, also got wins from Nick Shultz (9-7 at No. 4 against Jake McGuire, the best match of the afternoon), Tighe Clough (No. 5, 8-0) and Matt Leger (No. 6, 8-0).

“The guys came out and played well,” said Sillitta. “Plenty of room for improvement, but they won the points and games they needed to.”

While the Clippers are trying to determine how their new-look cast fits among the top teams in Division II, the Saints (1-1) are rebuilding and hoping to move upward.

They have a new coach in Ross Suleski, a former tennis and soccer standout at the school (Class of 2010), who played both sports in college (St. Joseph’s and Albertus Magnus) and assists his father, Scott, with the soccer team.

He’s also recruited from it in an attempt to build up the tennis team’s numbers. Top player Miguel Diaz, No. 3 Jack Dillow and No. 6 Hayden Blaisdell all followed him from the soccer pitch, and Diaz and Blaisdell grabbed wins in Thursday’s 6-3 season-opening triumph against Oyster River.

“That was a great start to the season,” said Suleski. “From what I understand, last year they only got two wins and a lot of guys came in worrying about how the season would go. So that can be good, being the underdog without a lot of high expectations.”

Friday was a move up in weight class, right from the start.

″(Diaz) struggled today but he beat a real good player yesterday,” said Suleski. “He can keep the match competitive. He doesn’t get overwhelmed. He’s got real good composure for a kid who’s never played competitive tennis.”

The Saints’ lone win came at No. 3 doubles, from Dillow and Jack Benelli, 8-1. Calvin Kobylinski and Clough earned the Clippers a point at No. 2 doubles, 8-0.

With four matches on tap next week, including a makeup of Wednesday’s postponement against Coe-Brown, Portsmouth will jump right into a season where its main asset might be depth.

“I think our depth can really (offset) losing our top three guys in Garret (Husslage), Jack (DiPietro) and Jason (Madeira),” said Madden. “Our No. 1 guy, I didn’t even know he was coming to our school until the first day of tryouts. I think that really adds a lot to our team. It makes us a competitor again.”

Neither the left-handed Porter, whose father was a top player at Dover a generation ago, nor Bloom are big guys, but they hit big. Their ability was on display in both their singles and doubles wins.

“For their sizes, they really have a lot of power behind their shots,” said Madden.

Madden, who largely played — and won — at No. 4 singles last year, handled his first test his season at No. 2 efficiently.

“Wherever he played last year, he played solid,” said Sillitta. “I told him today he was playing 2. It felt like the right spot for him and he proved it. He played a good match.”

It was a new look for Portsmouth tennis on Friday. But certainly not a bad one.

STA Senior Captain Miguel Diaz (left) and Sophomore Owen Himmer (right) in #1 and #2 singles action.