After singles success, Matthew Marchini doubles up with brother, Jonathan

Matthew Marchini JIM MACLEAN PHOTO

By JIM MACLEAN 

For the last five years, Matthew Marchini has been a consistent force on the tennis courts at John Jay. A varsity starter since eighth grade, Marchini has been the number one singles player for the Wolves since his freshman year.

He has played singles throughout his career at John Jay on the first court and in the Section 1 tournament his sophomore and junior year, but for his senior year he decided to mix it up and play his final high school Section 1 tournament in the doubles draw competing with his brother Jonathan.

The Marchini brothers cruised through the first two rounds, winning their first match by a score of 6-0, 6-1 against Hastings, and then defeating Byram Hills 6-3, 6-0 in the second round. Their third round match was a thriller, going the distance before losing in the tiebreaker to New Rochelle by the score of 4-6, 6-3, 10-4.

“That was a last minute call, I was going to play singles, but it’s my last year and I figured I’d play with my brother and see if we could make something happen,” explained Marchini. “We ended up with a tough third round match, it was a great match and overall it was a lot of fun. I’ve rarely played doubles, I played singles in the tournament 10th and 11th grade, but it was fun to end it on the court with my brother.”

John Jay had a number of highlights at the tournament. In addition to the Marchini brothers winning two matches, Karl Shue and Bradley Dallesandro teamed up in doubles and won their first match 6-3, 6-3 and also had a thriller in the second round, pushing Mamaroneck to the limit before falling by a score of 6-2, 2-6, 10-8. Tom Partouche won his first match in singles by a score of 6-2, 6-1 before falling in the second round.

A sign of good things to come as all of those players return for the Wolves next season with only two seniors on the varsity roster.

However, the face of John Jay tennis has been Matthew Marchini for five seasons on varsity. It’s hard to imagine a home match for the Wolves without him on the first court where he has played every day for practice and matches.

“Wow, too many hours to count, I’ve spent a lot of time on this court,” admitted Marchini. “It’s sad to leave; a lot of good memories over the last five years. Since freshman year I started playing number one singles on this court. I started playing when I was eight years old and I’ve been playing year round since eighth grade. I really kicked in sophomore year and I tried to improve my game and stressed myself out. That took its toll, and this year was more about enjoying it.”

Playing doubles in the tournament with his brother instead of singles was one last chance to enjoy it. With such a young roster competing in the top league against all the best teams in the section, John Jay played one tough match after another, especially for Marchini against the top singles player from each team.

In the end, that makes the team better rather than winning easy matches, and Marchini admits he was able to enjoy the team aspect of the sport this year as the senior captain for the Wolves.

“Youngest team I’ve seen since I’ve been here and it was good for me, I was captain and this was my time to be a leader,” Marchini said of the Wolves. “Hopefully, I set a good standard and led by example. I tried to show a lot of enthusiasm in matches and it was a great season. We love supporting each other and having your team on the sideline pumps you up. We had a lot of close matches and it was exciting.”

John Jay coach Paul Crivelli has been with him throughout his high school career, and he says Marchini has certainly led by example for the Wolves. He graduates as one of the top players in the history of the program after all that he has accomplished.

“Matthew has been a cornerstone of our program since eighth grade and it’s been incredible to watch his growth both on and off the court,” Crivelli said of Marchini. “Over the years, he developed into one of the premier players in Section 1, but what has always stood out most is the way he carried himself as a teammate and leader. He consistently led by example, showing up early, putting in the extra work, and always representing John Jay with class and integrity. His quiet leadership has left a lasting mark on our team and culture. We are extremely proud of everything he has accomplished.”