Sean Corrigan joked that he’s a first-year teacher, first-year coach and first-year adult.

The Pelham girls tennis coach hopes to continue his own maturation process alongside his players this season and in years to come.

On Monday, May 11, the Pythons fell to upstart Bedford, 8-1, but Corrigan looked on during the matches with an eye towards the future.

With the loss, Pelham fell to 3-7 on the year, but with only two seniors in the starting rotation, the mentor remains upbeat.

“We have a lot of promise and young players,” said Corrigan. “We have a lot of players who want to get better and are determined to improve their game.”

The closest singles match came at No. 4; Jacky Ta battled back before falling to Lauren Pritchard, 8-6.

Megan Szmyt and Shannon Krauss are the top two singles players for the Pythons, and the only seniors in the rotation.

Janelle Gordon, in her first year of competitive play, could vie for the top spot next year in Szmyt’s absence. Gordon has taken lessons for years but picked up a racquet in March and has since become one of the better players on the team.

Also performing well this season has been junior Nicole Mastacouris, whom Corrigan said has been one of the silver linings in a sub-par season for Pelham. The No. 6 singles player has gone 7-3 so far, despite losing her match to Bedford’s Ally Mahoney by an 8-4 margin.

In addition, Mastacouris battled wrist tendonitis but played her doubles match.

“It shows she has a lot of desire and is here to play,” said Corrigan. “It sets a great example to the team that she is willing to play no matter the circumstances.”

Corrigan keenly watched an exhibition doubles contest featuring sophomores Kammi Mickle and Kayla Soares.

The coach said he looks forward to seeing the duo in his future rotation and said the exhibition matches help them gain competitive experience.

Another aspect of the loss that Corrigan found beneficial was playing a team far ahead of his squad in the standings.

“When you play a top-seeded team, you get to see how they carry themselves,” said Corrigan. “I’m glad they can see how winning teams do the little things. It isn’t only about how you hit the ball, it’s about the cohesiveness of the team.”