OCHS Teams of the 90's
Joe Carey top Raider boys tennis player of the 90s!
By TOM WILLIAMS
Gazette Staff Writer
The 1990s were like an Oreo cookie for the Ocean City High School boys tennis team - the sweet stuff
was in the middle. After a losing team to start the decade, Phil Birnbaum's Raiders had six straight
winning seasons, including four trips to the NJSIAA South Jersey Group 3 finals.
OC lost twice to Mainland (1995 and 1996) and twice to Cumberland (1991 and 1992) in South Jersey
finals during those 10 years as Cape-Atlantic League teams doninated the Group 3 tournament.
Birnbaum, whose 30 years as OCHS boys tennis coach was the longest tenure of any Raider coach in
any sport, has coached four South Jersey boys tennis champions. The last one was in 1983. The other
three were in succession - from 1974-76.
Joe Carey led Ocean City to South Jersey final appearances in 1995 and 1996. Carey was 75-16 in three
seasons as OC's No. 1 singles player, the most singles wins in school history, and is the choice as the
OCHS Player of the 1990s. He played at St. Augustine Prep as a freshman. During his senior year, Joe
and his sister, Margaret, became the first brother-sister combination to play No. 1 singles for OCHS in the
same school year.
Kevin Schmidt also played No. 1 singles for three seasons during the decade, finishing with a 55-24 record.
Schmidt also took the Raiders to a pair of South Jersey finals.
"It's pretty close between the two of them," said Birnbaum about Carey and Schmidt. "There were times
when Kevin played well enough to beat Joe. But, Joe certainly had three solid seasons with more than 20
wins." It was something only OCHS Player of the Century Don Barton had done before.
"And I'll tell you one more thing," Birnbaum added. "Kyle Ragan would be right there with both of them. He
challenged Joe their final year together, when Kyle was playing No. 2 for us."
Ragan was 25-2 in 1996 at No. 2 singles and then, when Carey graduated, moved up to No. 1 and was
20-4.
The first doubles team of the 1990s was Frank Donato and Jon Olek, who earned All-Group 3 honors while
playing together in 1991 and 1992.
The second doubles team pairs Matt Applebaum and Mike Cortes, who won the Cape-Atlantic League
doubles tournament in 1996.
OCHS Boys Tennis in the 90s
Season....Record....Coach.................No. 1 Player
1990........9-11........Phil Birnbaum......Jim Holsombach 8-12
1991........15-9........Phil Birnbaum......Kevin Schmidt 16-11
1992........15-3........Phil Birnbaum......Kevin Schmidt 14-10
1993........17-4........Phil Birnbaum......Kevin Schmidt 25-3
1994........19-4........Phil Birnbaum......Joe Carey 26-4
1995........20-5........Phil Birnbaum......Joe Carey 26-7
1996........17-6........Phil Birnbaum......Joe Carey 23-5
1997........2-15........Phil Birnbaum......Kyle Ragan 20-4
1998........4-14........Phil Birnbaum......Pete Downham 3-14
1999........3-13........Phil Birnbaum......Pete Downham 4-10
The All-90s Raider Boys Tennis Team
Singles.....Joe Carey
Singles.....Kevin Schmidt
Singles.....Kyle Ragan
Doubles.....Frank Donato-Jon Olek
Doubles.....Matt Applebaum-Mike Cortes