Paula Velazquez Osornio leads Ross to Suffolk girls tennis small school title
The Ross School celebrates victory in the Suffolk small schools girls tennis team championship on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026 in Shoreham. Credit: Michael A. Rupolo Sr.
After five years of trying, the Ross School's girls tennis team finally sits atop Suffolk County.
The top-seeded Ravens defeated No. 2 Bayport-Blue Point, 4-3, in the small school county championships on Thursday at Shoreham-Wading River, snapping the Phantoms’ five-year win streak. Paula Velazquez Osornio clinched the win at first singles with a 7-6 (4), 3-6, 6-3 win over Lily Castka.
“It was a hard match,” Velazquez Osornio said. “I think what helped me most was just staying positive, keeping my head high and telling myself good things.”
All eyes were on the deciding match after the other courts wrapped up nearly an hour earlier. Bayport-Blue Point second doubles pair Leila Rogers and Eden Romano defeated Olivia Caruso and Vivienne Anton, 6-4, 6-4, to tie the match at three.
Despite the pressure, first-year Ross coach Richele LeSaldo said Velazquez Osornio had what it took to win. She had fallen in the semifinals of the Suffolk IV individual tournament on Tuesday and came into Thursday’s championship with a chip on her shoulder.
“Paula is a phenomenal player,” LeSaldo said. “She was a little disappointed in individuals and I think she really wanted to come back and prove herself as a player. She’s a champion and she dug deep. I’m really happy for her.”
Velazquez Osornio said the emotions of hitting the match point went beyond words.
“I don’t know if I can describe it,” she said. “It feels good because I know that my team is counting on me and I’m counting on me, so it’s a really good feeling and I’m really proud.”
Ross advances to the Long Island championship, where it will face Nassau champion Cold Spring Harbor at 2 p.m. Oct. 24 at Shoreham-Wading River.
But the Ravens’ victory didn’t come without controversy. In May, the Ross boys team was disqualified from the team county championship match against Bayport-Blue Point after Ross self-reported the use of an ineligible player.
The ineligible player, then-sophomore Alejandro Perez Trapero, transferred from Spain and played against competition equivalent to the high school standard while in his native country. By NYSPHSAA rule, he should have been ineligible for one year. Bayport-Blue Point then defeated Port Jefferson, which lost to Ross in the semifinal, to win the county championship.
Velazquez Osornio is a transfer student from Mexico. Bayport-Blue Point coach John Selvaggio said competing against internationally sourced players is unfair to public school athletes.
“It takes 10 years to build a program like we have here at Bayport-Blue Point,” Selvaggio said. “It’s disappointing for these athletes to put in so much time and work just to see this opportunity slip through our fingers at the hands of a private school.”
Section XI executive director Tom Combs said, despite its private school status, Ross follows all state and county guidelines to compete in Suffolk athletics.
“The Ross School is a member school. They follow all of our Section XI rules, they follow all of NYSPHSAA’s policies and rules,” Combs said. “They’re eligible to compete against the rest of the student athletes within Suffolk County. That’s really it, there’s nothing else to say.”
Newsday's Michael Sicoli contributed to this report.
Tess Ferguson is a reporter on Newsday's high school sports staff. She joined the team after graduating with a journalism degree from Ithaca College in 2025.
