ALL-OUT EFFORT—Thousand Oaks High’s Michael Kunisaki lunges to make a return shot against Newbury Park on Tuesday. JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers Tennis is about experience, desire and wearing out the guy across the net.

All local schools are enjoying solid seasons across the board.

The Thousand Oaks High boys’ tennis team graduated four quality starters after winning a CIF-Southern Section Division 1 championship last spring, but the Lancers remains formidable.

Westlake has the depth and versatility to challenge defending Marmonte League champion Thousand Oaks.

Newbury Park, which hadn’t made the postseason since the 1970s until qualifying for the playoffs the past two seasons, is primed for a third straight trip.

Oaks Christian should continue to dominate the Tri-Valley League, backed by a fearsome trio of singles standouts.

The Thousand Oaks Acorn takes a closer look at the local teams:

TOUCH—Michael Kennedy of Newbury Park hits a backhand slice. JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers Thousand Oaks Lancers

The Lancers know that 2009 was special. They hope for more good things in 2010.

“I would like to win the Marmonte League and see if we can go fairly deep in the playoffs,” Thousand Oaks head coach Dave Assorson said.

TOHS (6-1 overall) will contend with several pieces in place, including Marcos Giron, who the coach said is “one of the top 15 players in the country.”

Giron, a junior who has already won two section doubles championships, has a strong allaround game.

Sophomore Brendon Josephson has a bright future and solidifies the singles rotation. Greg Wise, a role player last year, is also starting at singles and enjoying plenty of early-season success.

Two freshman phenoms, Chris Lees and Daniel Minami, join forces at No. 1 doubles. Lees may be better than his older brother, William, who also played at TOHS. Lees and Minami entered this week undefeated.

Ben Moon and Michael Kunisaki, contributors on the section title squad, play No. 2 doubles. James Baumgarten and Nick Holder also swing away at doubles.

Matthew Skwaruzynski, Egan Escudero and Samir Malhotra also contribute for the Lancers.

Assorson said Thousand Oaks will be in the thick of a close race throughout league with Westlake and Calabasas, whom the Lancers defeated 11-7 last week.

“It will probably go right down to the wire,” the coach said. “It should be a pretty interesting season coming up.”

Westlake Warriors

Led by head coach Connie Flanderka, the Warriors are hunting for a league title.

Flanderka can shuffle singles and doubles players in and out with positive results.

Two singles stars lead the way for Westlake.

Senior Zach Drost is a natural captain, and he’s a rock for this team. Mitch Krems, a super sophomore, is a fiery player with a killer instinct to slice opponents, using his racket much the same way a samurai implements a katana blade to carve up outlaws.

“Zach has a good temperament on the court,” Flanderka said. “He’s very cohesive. He’s there for everybody, encouraging other people even though he’s focused on his match.

“Mitch is also consistent. He’s a fighter—he really wants to win each point. If he’s down in a game, he’s always willing to fight back.”

Harrison Han and Brian Ho, sophomores who played doubles together last year, are in a groove.

Seniors Tate Nelson and Josh Lefkovitch reinforce depth at doubles but can also play alone.

Richie Greentree, Adam Kane, Kyle Verman, Brett Kaplan and Micah Smith also contribute.

Although the Warriors (5-1 overall) are making strides, Flanderka wants to see her team take another big step forward.

“I’ve seen some improvement already in match play,” she said.

“I’d like to see everybody be cohesive with the team and utilize our depth for every match. We might go out and play two good rounds then slack off—I don’t want to see that. I want them to give 100-plus percent every single round of every single match.”

Westlake travels to Calabasas at 3 p.m. today for a big Marmonte match.

Newbury Park Panthers

The Panthers are a consistent and close group in the mix for another postseason bid.

After starting 6-3, Newbury Park hopes to continue winning matches deep into the Marmonte schedule.

“We’re playing fairly consistently. We’re playing hard,” said NPHS coach Brad Nelson, who has guided the team for 13 seasons. “I also like that we have pretty good camaraderie between the players. They’re very supportive of each other.”

No. 1 singles standout William Duncan leads this squad.

“He’s a very hard worker,” Nelson said of Duncan. “He plays every day. He’s got a real powerful serve and a solid forehand. He’s an all-court player. He attacks quite often, coming to the net.”

Duncan is one of three juniors, including Austin Hynes and David Yoo, who have played varsity tennis since they were freshmen.

Hynes and Yoo can play singles or doubles. Newbury Park is still tinkering with the lineup, hoping to find the most compatible doubles partner for Yoo, the team’s best doubles player.

Sophomore Nick Sweetman joins Duncan and Hynes in the singles lineup. Dylan Sauer and Michael Kennedy play big roles at doubles.

Hans Gao, Josh Adler, Dennis Gahm, Eugene Ng, Sanjay Siddhanti, Tej Patel, Michael Yoo, James Chang and Aleksander Ternovskiy also contribute.

Nelson said he hopes to see more production at doubles. He wants players to become more aggressive by attacking the net.

Nelson, who has taught math at NPHS for 36 years, has also coached baseball, softball and wrestling at Newbury Park.

Oaks Christian Lions

The Lions are dangerous. Heck, even the captains— Captain Jack and Captain Morgan—sound like they should be hoisting the Jolly Roger on a vessel carousing across the Adriatic Sea.

Jack Sanford and Dillon Morgan are Oaks Christian’s captains.

Sanford has been the school’s top singles player for three years. Although he’s a junior, this is his last year of athletic eligibility, according to first-year head coach Donald Roberson.

A straight-A student who dreams about playing tennis at the University of Notre Dame, Sanford leads by example.

“He has a quiet manner about him,” said Roberson, who has coached tennis for 40 years, including 15 at the high school level. “He’s not egotistical and he doesn’t strut around. He goes out there and beats everybody. He’s very competitive.”

Connor Daly fills the No. 2 singles spot. Roberson calls the mentally tough sophomore “king of the grinders” because of the way Daly grinds out long victories.

Wyatt Houghton, a 6-foot-3 standout, has a killer serve and can also volley. Houghton is eager to take advantage of mismatches, including players recovering from injuries.

“He doesn’t hold anything back,” the coach said of Houghton. “He goes all out.”

Mason Lewis and Ridge Kennington comprise a formidable doubles duo. Dillon Morgan and Matt Gazarra are also a tough out at No. 2 doubles.

Junior Brian Pugh contributes at doubles. Matt Spipione, Brian Sullivan, Matt Geib or Michael Dingman also help out. Pugh’s younger brother, Jack, is a freshman on the team.

The Lions are 6-1 overall. Their only loss was to Calabasas.