Coming off the best season in team history and with a newly established feeder program in place, Goffstown boys tennis is once again positioned for a successful run among Class L competitors.

Though the Grizzlies fell to state super power Concord, 7-2, in the tournament semifinals last season, coach Tom Meighan said the pieces are in place for GHS to join the elite in the near future.

Last season, the YMCA opened its doors to the tennis team. While other squads bounced balls off walls in school gyms waiting for winter to thaw, the Grizzlies prepared for the season in a “cushy-warm tennis environment.”

Goffstown opened the 2007 season with six straight victories and earned the No. 4 playoff seed. The team beat Manchester Central, 5-4, in the Class L quarterfinals, a contest Meighan described as one of the best duels he’s ever seen.

This season, the Grizzlies are once again at the YMCA every morning – 6 a.m. sharp.

And Meighan said he hasn’t heard a complaint yet. “The NHIAA only takes eight teams into the playoffs, so you can have a great season and end up in ninth or 10th place and not make it,” said the coach. “In my mind, it doesn’t matter if we’re fourth or eighth, as long as we’re there. But that’s why it’s so important that you get off to a strong start and don’t drop those early-season contests.

“We’re very fortunate, and all I can tell you, as a coach, is that when we have our first match we will be ready for the beginning of season. We have no excuses because our preparation is as good as anyone in the state.”

The 2008 Grizzlies are led by Conner Western, who Meighan said is the lone player on his squad to dedicate all his free time to tennis.

“Where most kids take the summer off or get a summer job, Conner joined the USTA, honed his game and brought it to another level,” said Meighan. “You don’t see that very often, especially at Goffstown.”

Indeed, GHS in general – and the tennis team in particular – is filled with multi-sport athletes. “Usually, when you get into tennis, especially at the top schools, kids tend to be specialists, and the rest of the kids have other interests,” said Meighan. “For some reason, at Goffstown, the tennis teams have been filled with multidimensional athletic talents, which I applaud and encourage, but it’s harder to foster a championship team because these kids are playing soccer, they’re playing basketball, they’re playing other sports throughout the year.”

That may be changing in the very near future.

Last year, Rob Coles took over the tennis program at the YMCA. “Rob is very interested in fostering tennis development in Goffstown,” said Meighan. “We’re hoping kids start hitting tennis balls earlier, hopefully at the elementary and middle school level, as opposed to those kids who pick up a racket for the first time when they get to high school. If we get that going, we can become one of those ‘dynasty schools’ like Concord or West.”

For the time being, Meighan is enjoying the challenge of mentoring talented athletes who are new to the sport.

And he’s finding success.

Nate Lafond, last year’s No. 4, who, like Western, didn’t play prior to high school, moves up to the No. 2 spot and pairs with Western as the Grizzlies’ No. 1 doubles tandem.

Lafond, who didn’t lose a singles match during the 2007 regular season, is a natural athlete and excellent golfer, said Meighan, who expects another standout season from the junior.

Alex Stoyle, the expected No. 3, is out with a broken thumb, but will provide a huge boost to the team when he returns later this season, said Meighan.

For now, sophomore Martin Bouroncle moves up. His coach said he’s by far the biggest surprise, in terms of improvement, and pairs with senior Tyler Wageling to form the squad’s No. 2 doubles team.

The two have meshed so well, Meighan said they are pressuring on Western and Lafond.

Sam Grandgeorge, a scholar with a gymnastic background, begins the season as the GHS No. 5, and Dave Thomas earns the sixth spot. They make up the No. 3 doubles unit.

“After last season, and that Central playoff match, there has been a real buzz around town about this team,” said Meighan. “Goffstown, for many years, has been a real baseball town with a strong Little League that I have coached in for several years myself. But … tennis is starting to get some real attention, and it’s fun to be a part of the good things that are happening here.”