The head coach of the Central High girls tennis team isn’t like most coaches when it comes to jumping ahead of foes. Indeed, the Little Green mentor wouldn’t mind the opposite.

“Tennis is the type of sport where you can be ahead, and if you drop your guard for one second, you’re not,” said Bill Cannon after a 9-0 squelching of Salem on Monday, May 14. “Sometimes being ahead is harder than being behind, so I try to get the girls to realize that and be smart and alert when they do take a lead.”

Though Cannon may get nervous when his squad gets to work early, the Little Green haven’t had many chances to come from behind, dominating most foes from the get-go. Central, in fact, has emerged as one of Class L’s strongest contenders come playoff time.

Against the Blue Devils, four-year No. 1 player Catherine Teague defeated Salem’s Courtney Viehl, 8-0. Catherine’s sister, Margaret, finished off her opponent, 8-0, in the No. 2 singles set.

Sophomore Romina Borbotsina won, 8-3, while teammate Justine Beaudoin won the No.4 singles set by the same score. Hooksett native Abby Zorawowicz, a senior, shut out Julianna Blaisdell, 8-0, and Phoebe Lyman won, 8-6.

In doubles, the Teague sisters combined for an 8-0 showing in the top-seeded match; Borbotsina and Beaudoin won, 8- 1; and Zorawowicz and Lyman defeated their opponents, 8-4.

“For us to finish as the top-seed would be big,” said Cannon. “But either way, we’ve still gotta get out and play.

We’ve been pretty consistent with where I thought we’d be at this point. I’ve had tremendous efforts from everyone, one through six. We’ve gotta keep it going.”

In a clash against one of this season’s top clubs in Concord, the Little Green beat the Crimson Tide, 6-3. As for playoff preparations, Cannon said simulating a match-like atmosphere during practices keeps his players sharp.

“A lot of the time you don’t practice like you play,” said Cannon. “You can go out and hammer a ball all day, and it won’t get you anywhere. To have that sort of pressure like a match keeps us playing the way we should play during a match.”