Rodriguez and Yi, Match Point Tennis Competitors & Friends

GOSHEN – Ethan Rodriguez rushed to Allen Yi’s side to offer him a

Gatorade during a break in his Orange County Interscholastic Athletic

Association (OCIAA) boys’ tennis tournament semifinal on Friday at

Match Point Tennis.

Yi, of Goshen High, was battling an abdomen injury and cramping. He

fought through his semifinal, setting up a showdown in the final with his

rival: Ethan Rodriguez.

Rodriguez, the second seed, defeated Yi, the top-seed, 7-6 (7-2), 6-3 to

become the first Minisink Valley player in more than a decade to win the

OCIAA title. And while the pair are rivals, they also are close friends

and hitting partners, maintaining a mutual respect for each other.

“I appreciate the challenge of playing against Allen and he pushes me to

become better,” Rodriguez said. “As competitive as we are on the court,

off the court we are good friends. Not everyone respects their opponents

as much as Allen does and I look forward to playing him more in the

future.”

The Rodriguez-Yi rivalry could be a thing for the next three-plus years.

Both are freshmen and will play in the Section 9 championships on

Wednesday and Thursday at Match Point. Yi defeated Rodriguez 6-4, 7-

6 (7-3) on April 10 th . Rodriguez led Yi 6-7 (5-7), 6-0, 4-3 in a match that

was called due to bad weather three weeks later.

The pair train together at Match Point and also hit at the facility

regularly, working on their game and playing matches against each

other. Rodriguez and Yi often play doubles together in United States

Tennis Association (USTA) tournaments.

“Ethan and Allen are both rising stars,” said Peter Krasinski, who

coaches both players at Match Point. “They have displayed a level of

match maturity beyond their years. They have a great balance of

friendship on and off the court, and respect for each other as competitors

to hold nothing back when it comes to playing a match. I believe we will

see them push each other to the top of their games and see a healthy

rivalry for years to come.”