Allen brothers help Franklin Regional tennis reload

By: Paul Schofield
Saturday, April 9, 2022 | 8:01 AM

Franklin Regional’s boys tennis team reached the WPIAL Class 3A finals in 2021, falling to Shady Side Academy.

And with the graduation of seven players, you would think this would be a rebuilding year.

Nope. With the addition of the Allen brothers, the Panthers (8-0, 4-0) just reloaded.

Andrew Allen, a senior, and his brother Aaron, a junior, joined the Franklin Regional team this season after transferring to the area from Texas during the 2020-21 school year.

Instead of joining the Panthers’ squad last year, the Allens decided to work on their games and found a trainer to help them out.

“I found out right before the season that they wanted to be part of a team,” Franklin Regional coach Howard Fisher said. “Andrew is home schooled and Aaron is attending classes.

“We asked them to join last year, but they decided not to. We’re glad they did.”

The Allens reached the Section 1-3A singles finals with Andrew edging out his brother, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4.

“They’ve developed a nice relationship with the players in the team,” Fisher said. “I knew they were talented players. They haven’t lost this season.”

The Panthers have dominated their opponents and even defeated Mt. Lebanon, 4-1.

“I depend on a nine-player rotation,” Fisher said. “Everyone has played in at least five matches.”

The other key players on the roster include seniors Prerit Yadav, Urvish Jain, Abhinav Komanduri and Atharva Mayekar, juniors Josh Selvakumar and Adi Arkalgud, and sophomore Dhruv Kulkarni.

“We benefit from a lot of players participating in tournaments,” Fisher said. “They are ready when it’s time for them to play.”

And Fisher hopes the team continues to improve and gets a good seed in the WPIAL playoffs. They still have matches scheduled against North Allegheny and Fox Chapel.

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Franklin Regional