Ross School out of county team tennis championship match after self-reporting ineligible player
Alejandro Perez Trapero of The Ross School smashes the forehand return during the Suffolk boys individual tennis finals on May 19, 2026. Credit: Dawn McCormick
The Suffolk County Division II boys team tennis championship between Bayport-Blue Point and Ross School was canceled Tuesday after Ross reported the use of an ineligible player. .
Ross School headmaster Tom Sturtevant contacted the Section XI office and self-reported the use of an ineligible player and was forced out of the team tournament, according to Tom Combs, the executive director for Section XI. Calls to Sturtevant were not returned.
Section XI officials, which governs all Suffolk’s interscholastic athletics, rescheduled the Division II final for Wednesday at 5 p.m. at Shoreham-Wading River High School. Port Jefferson, which lost to Ross in a semifinal,will advance to the Suffolk title match against Bayport-Blue Point.
“This is not an indictment on the Ross School,” Combs said. “It’s just an oversight and the way the foreign exchange direct placement rule was interpreted by the school. I give them credit for coming forward and saying there was a mistake.”
The ineligible player, sophomore Alejandro Perez Trapero, also won his first Suffolk County Division II singles title on May 19. The transfer from Spain 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.
Perez Trapero was stripped of his individual title by Section XI. He beat Ross teammate Ignacio Pena Lopez, 6-3, 6-2, in the final. Pena Lopez (16-2) will represent Section XI in the state tournament at the USTA National Tennis Center in Queens on June 5. His only two losses this season were to Perez Trapero.
“He said he did not participate in high school competition,” Combs said. “If international transfers are playing recreational tennis, they are OK to play here. If they’re playing formal, organized and scheduled contests between teams and/or individuals and scores are kept and uniforms worn, they would be considered playing equivalent to high school level and by rule they must sit a year – because there is no corresponding change of address for the parents.”
The complexity of the eligibility rule never made it to the state level after Ross self-reported its violation of the state rule to Section XI.
“These are always unfortunate situations,” Robert Zayas, the executive director of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association said. “And I personally want to commend Ross School administration for upholding all the rules and regulations of our high school athletic association. This speaks volumes of the integrity of the administration at Ross School because this level of rule and adherence can be very difficult to navigate.”
According to Zayas, Perez Trapero is eligible to play again next year as a junior.
Gregg Sarra is Newsday's high school sports editor and has been on the beat since the mid-1980s.
