South Side High School tennis standouts collect accolades at USTA awards dinner

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Members of South Side High School’s varsity tennis teams recently received several awards at the annual United States Tennis Association awards dinner. Julia Gentile and Lauren Zola were recognized for winning the Nassau County girls’ doubles title last October. Gentile and Zola, who made it to the quarterfinals in the 2017 tourney, became the first South Side team to win the county title since Deana Davoudiasi and Rachel Shenker in 2010.

Zola also took home the Junior Sportsmanship Award, and Philip Frank and Justin Seplowe were awarded the Long Island High School Tennis Team of the Year for their work in creating “An Ace for Autism,” a free tennis clinic for children with special needs. Frank was inspired to start the event last year for his cousin Will Ryan, who has autism. The event was held for the second time on May 4 at the Hewitt Elementary School tennis courts.