WATERBORO — The Thornton Academy boys tennis team cruised past host Massabesic 5-0 Friday afternoon to improve its record to a perfect 8-0 on the year.

Coming off an impressive 2015 campaign that concluded with a regional finals appearance, the Trojans have continued to stay hot in 2016.

TA coach Andrew Carlson likes the mix of returners along with new additions this year.

“It’s good, we’re on a good roll. We brought in a few new players this year that have really added to the mix, they’ve added to the culture of the team,” said Carlson. “I think this is building off of last season … we had a lot of success last year and we have a lot of experience coming back.”

With a group of enthusiastic players, Carlson has enjoyed coaching this squad.

“We have a lot of guys that just love to play, we have had some good practices, guys don’t want to get off the court. They’re very coachable, they’re self-motivated and I think there is a great support system throughout the team,” said Carlson.

Viktor Schwarz earned a singles victory over Massabesic’s Joel Von Tussell 6-0, 6-2, while Jack Xiao beat Massabesic’s Chase Stearns 6-0, 6-1. Jared Waterhouse completed TA’s singles sweep, topping Camden Berry 6-2, 6-0.

TA’s first doubles pair of Simon Belliveau and Jackson Dohse beat Dan Boldender and Jacob Cyr 6-1, 6-0, while TA’s Dylan Gooch and Asher Thompson pushed past Alex Herrick and Tommase Mobiglia 6-0, 6-1.

Coming into Friday with a record of 1- 6, Massabesic coach Pat Parent was proud of the way his team stepped up to the challenge.

“We’re total opposites, we are inexperienced but you get experience quickly when you play a team like TA, they’re very strong,” said Parent. “I was happy with our kids, they decided that they were going to hit the ball hard and get it going. We didn’t get skunked … we won a few games, it’s just one of those things, there are teams that we compete against that are much better.”

Parent expects his team to improve with experience.

“We’re getting better, we have a good bunch of athletes that may not have much tennis experience but are picking it up … they’ll get it over time,” said Parent.

TA hopes to continue it’s winning streak. According to Carlson, the key to its success has been patience, and taking one point at a time.

“I would like to see us be even more clean, be more efficient. We talk about that sometimes in tight matches it can come down to one point. A shot you make or a shot you avoid can be the difference,” said Carlson. “We also talk about not letting one point define the match. It’s a series of shots, it’s a series of sets and it’s a series of games and I think we have guys that understand that.”

Looking forward, Carlson and his team look to succeed while enjoying the moment.

“Our focus is to just stay sharp, we’re fortunate that our program right now is one of the strongest in the league so we want to go into each match respecting our opponent and the experience,” said Carlson. “I want the kids to show good sportsmanship and they have done that so far. So hopefully we can take this momentum into the early rounds of the playoffs.”

— Sports Staff Writer Alex Sponseller can be reached at [email protected] or at 282-1535 ext. 323. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.