Boys’ Tennis Preview: Burroughs, Burbank deal with change with season looming

The boys’ tennis programs at Burroughs High and Burbank are dealing with plenty of changes as the 2016 season approaches.

The Indians are adjusting to life without the services of four-year standout Sawyer Patterson, who graduated and is now playing at the University of Redlands. Patterson was a two-time Pacific League singles champion and placed third in league in 2015.

“It’s kind of different not having Sawyer around this season, we got used to having him around,” Burroughs Coach Roy Bernhardt said. “He was a good player for us for four years and we could rely on him for points.”

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At Burbank, there has been a change with the coaching situation. Longtime Coach Loi Phan will take on more of a supervisor role and the daily training and practices will be taken over by brothers Kenneth and Kevin Banares.

“They are both good guys, they are enthusiastic and they will go a good job,” said Phan, who also coaches the school’s girls’ tennis and boys’ soccer teams.

With the season set to begin early next week, here is a closer look at how the teams are shaping up.

BURBANK

As has been the case the last few years, the Pacific League tennis teams won’t have much time to ease into the season, as the sport has the earliest start of any other spring athletics. The Bulldogs, who placed fifth last season and didn’t qualify for the playoffs, begin their season Tuesday with a league match against Crescenta Valley.

“I only have one [nonleague match] this year and that’s just because we have a bye in between our league,” Phan said. “All the rest are league [matches]. Starting that early doesn’t give you much time to prepare. You start league and maybe by the half-way point you finally get your lineup figured out.

“The good thing about league this year is that at least we don’t play one team twice before you play another team just once. But everyone in the league is in the same boat.”

Burbank will field a young team that doesn’t have a great deal of experience. However, the team does have one experienced player in senior Kevin Orellana, who is in his fourth season. In the 2013 league tournament, Orellana placed third in singles.

“He has been a pretty consistent player for us over the years,” Phan said of Orellana. “He knows the drill and he has played a lot for us.”

Also returning is sophomore singles player Luciano Dupeutto, who will likely play at the No. 2 spot. Likewise looking to contribute are senior Ryan Hyunm, who will play doubles, junior Alejandro Ramos is a returning double player and new to the squad is freshman James Lee, who will play singles.

“In league it’s going to be all Arcadia again,” Phan said of the defending league champion. “They are going to be the clear favorite and then it’s going to be everyone else playing for the other spots.

“We’re young, so we are just going to see what we can do.”

BURROUGHS

The Indians are coming off a season in which they placed fourth in the Pacific League and fell in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division II playoffs to Villa Park, 13-5.

Burroughs opens its season at home Tuesday with a nonleague match against Mark Keppel. It will start league play two days later at home against Hoover.

“At least we get one [match] in before we start league,” Bernhardt said. “Then we go right into league and we have to be ready for all the league competition. We always start early now and that is the standard.”

Like Burbank, the Indians should field a young team with limited experience.

“We had three guys from last year who didn’t come out, they got jobs and other things,” Bernhardt said. “And we lost some players to graduation. So, I have had to bring up about four guys from [junior varsity]. ... It’s kind of slim pickings for us.”

The Indians do have an experienced returner in sophomore singles player Kendric Marcy. Doubles players who Bernhardt said he will rely on are seniors Peter Vu and John Hoang.

“That’s about it for us,” Bernhardt said. “I think Arcadia is going to be untouchable in our league. They have ninth-graders who play on varsity and they are very good. ... I’m hoping maybe we can get that last spot in league to make it to the playoffs.”

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Jeff Tully, jeff.tully@latimes.com

Twitter: @jefftsports