Name: Ari Gayer
School: Townsend Harris
Sport: Tennis
Position: First Singles
Year: Sophomore
Hometown: Fresh Meadows
Midway through his high school tennis career, Ari Gayer can already lay claim to the title of city champion. The Townsend Harris sophomore defeated top-seeded Alex Dobrin from Cardozo, 6-1, 6-2, to capture the PSAL individual championship Monday at Queens College.
Gayer, the No. 2 seed, breezed through the first set at the National Tennis Center Friday before a torrential downpour postponed the match and moved it indoors at Queens College Monday.
“It feels good to be a city champion, but it’s not a full victory because Alex is hurt,” Gayer said, referring to back problems that have plagued Dobrin. “I wish I could have finished it Friday because I did have momentum and I like those courts better.”
It would seem Gayer could ride that momentum into this week’s Mayor’s Cup individual tournament. But the No. 4 seed, who fell in a three-set thriller in the quarterfinals last year, has taken himself out of the tournament to study for finals.
In a match to decide the Mayor’s Cup girls’ title, St. Francis Prep freshman Martina Featherston came up huge, defeating Brooklyn Tech’s Monica Myers, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 in third singles as the Terriers celebrated their record fourth Mayor’s Cup championship … Carlos Guzman, a junior shortstop at John Adams, belted the game-winning hit in a dramatic come-from-behind win over Grover Cleveland and then got the save two hours later as the Spartans defeated George Washington, 6-5 to advance to the PSAL ‘A’ semifinals … Ally Stamatiades, a senior pitcher on the Bryant softball team, shook off early nerves and not only dominated No. 4 Port Richmond from the mound, but also smacked a crucial lead-off double in the top of the seventh and scored the winning run in the 1-0 PSAL ‘A’ quarterfinal victory … Archbishop Molloy’s Nick Derba had three hits and three RBIs in the Stanners’ 7-3 win over St. Raymond’s Monday.
