The Whitehall boys tennis team is at it again this season, turning the beginning of the year into a court of misery for their opponents.

Their latest victim was Freedom High School, defeating the Patriots 5-2. Freedom, who won a District 11 Championship in 2015, couldn’t break through in any of the singles matches as the Zephyrs swept all three spots.

The win against the Pates marked the first time in head coach Austin Berg’s six-year tenure that his team defeated Freedom. While graduation may have cut the Pates down a notch, they were still the most competitive team the Zephs faced so far this season. The Zephyrs responded by rising to the occasion, winning in straight sets in all five of their victories.

Even though Berg had to juggle his line-up due to some absences, they didn’t miss a beat, as Nick Demjan slid into No. 3 singles and promptly dismantled Matthew Mullen, 6-3, 6-2.

“He handled No. 3 singles really well,” said Berg.

Berg said that he expects that Demjan will eventually make the transition to singles. Berg said that he needs to work on his consistency, an important aspect to his game that will benefit him in the future.

At No. 1 singles, Jeremy Lim defeated Jonathan Florentino, 6-3, 6-0. Berg said that Lim had to adapt his strategy during the first set. Berg said that he was trying to paint the line and that contributed to dropping some games. He advised him “to bring it in a little bit” and work on moving Florentino’s feet. It was a matter of simplifying things with Lim making the adjustment and blanking the Pate in the second set.

“That seemed to work out,” said Berg.

Nick Rohn was bumped up to No. 2 and won decisively over Justin Szaro, 6-1, 6-2.

“He did a really good job,” said Berg.

Berg said that Rohn was able to modify his serve in the first set, taking some pace off the ball so he could better command it. Berg said that with the modification he still has plenty of pace to overpower his opponent.

“Once his did that, he cruised,” said Berg.

Berg said that he didn’t want to upset the chemistry of No. 4 doubles team Trevor Girardi and Jeremy Snyder; instead, opting to pair Erik Poon with Aidan Gilroy at No. 2 doubles. Berg said that Poon can adapt to anyone which made that decision a bit easier. Berg said that Poon plays with a lot of aggression and passion.

“He wants to win,” said Berg.

Poon and partner Gilroy did just that as they swept Abdul Kutbuddin and Paras Chand 6-3, 6-4.

Leaving Girardi and Snyder in tact allowed them to continue their strong interplay. Berg said that they’ve developed a nice complement to one another, using a combination of serves and cross shots to remain undefeated.

The Zephs two losses were in pro set at No. 1 doubles and a three-set tussle at No. 3 doubles.

Berg said he was pleased the way Daniel Lim and Noah Zharadnik bounced back after dropping the first set 2-6. They stayed competitive and won the the second 6-4. They eventually lost the decisive third set 4-6.

With Monday’s win, the Zephyrs move to 4-0. Last year they started the year 5-0 and all signs point to this becoming another strong season. Right now they’re in fifth place in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference. Berg is excited about having his team compete against some of the thoroughbreds in the EPC, namely Liberty, Nazareth and Parkland.

“I’m really looking forward to that,” he said.