Some may deem it a surprise that the Barnegat girls tennis team has played so well this fall. Coach Sue Rogers saw something special during the preseason.

“About a week into practice, I knew this would be a special season,” Rogers said after the Bengals scored a 3-2 victory over Howell on Oct. 9. “Just watching them hitting the ball, I was excited. We had a true No. 1 player coming back, and everybody else stepped up and into their roles beautifully. And they really get along well.