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Seneca losing two tennis luminaries

Some teams lose one top senior singles player and unquestioned leader. Seneca is losing two. Kacey Carrig and Storm Portner have been the heart and soul of Seneca tennis for four years. They will graduate as the No. 1 and No. 2 players, respectively, on the Golden Eagles' all-time list for victories.

Seneca's Storm Portner.
Seneca's Storm Portner.Read more

Some teams lose one top senior singles player and unquestioned leader.

Seneca is losing two.

Kacey Carrig and Storm Portner have been the heart and soul of Seneca tennis for four years. They will graduate as the No. 1 and No. 2 players, respectively, on the Golden Eagles' all-time list for victories.

"They are such great people," Seneca coach Sue Johnson said. "Besides being top athletes, they have meant so much to this program in so many other ways."

The two seniors, who are good friends, have been linked for four years. They aren't rivals, just healthy competitors who have worked to make each other better.

Portner was No. 1 singles as a freshman and sophomore and No. 2 singles as a junior and senior. Carrig was No. 3 singles as a freshman, No. 2 as a sophomore, and No. 1 as a junior and senior.

Portner won the Olympic Conference National Division singles title as a freshman and sophomore. Carrig won it as a junior and senior.

"A lot of teams have a strong No. 1, and then there's a big dip," Johnson said. "These two are right there with each other, and they are always hitting with each other. They energize the team."

Carrig went 29-5 this season. He finished his career with a 102-24 record. A top student, he plans to continue his tennis career at the College of New Jersey.

Portner went 25-6 this season to finish his career with a 98-25 record. The valedictorian of the senior class, he plans to attend Princeton.

Portner also proved an inspiration to his teammates and others this season after battling back from back surgery in August 2009.

"It's just amazing how parallel they were," Johnson said.