Consistency is everything for St. Bernard's Alex Zuczek. The way he plays tennis is strategic and exact and the results and successes that he sees are equally consistent.

It's also a reason why Zuczek was selected as The Day's 2016 All-Area Boys' Tennis Player of the Year, an honor he earned for the third consecutive season.

Zuczek saw consistency in winning his third straight Eastern Connecticut Conference championship, and continued his progress in the Class S state tournament. This year, however, the junior had to overcome some adversity along the way.

First off, it took a little more work for Zuczek to even be eligible to compete in the conference tournament.

After missing a few weeks of the regular season due to a bad blister on his racket hand, Zuczek was in jeopardy of not being able to compete in the ECC tournament. Having to play in at least half of the Saints' matches to qualify, he was forced to play in every match in the final week of the season, all while having to tightly tape his wrist and hand because of the blister.

"It was definitely a nerve-racking and intense week for me and my teammates," he said.

Zuczek was still able to achieve the No.1 overall seed and coasted his way to the final. For the first time in the ECC tournament, Zuczek wasn't looking across the court at his older brother, Nick, in the championship match. The brothers made it to the conference final together with a sense of ease in back-to-back seasons, and both times it was the younger Zuczek that took home the title.

In the first of the two meetings, Nick retired in the second set due to an injury to his right elbow. In his sophomore year, Alex won the first nine games and went on to win his second title.

This year, Zuczek faced another familiar face, but he wasn't blood related. Waterford's Camiren Carter and Zuczek taught classes together at the Lyme Shores tennis club and are good friends. On the court, though, Zuczek used his hard work and competitive edge to beat the senior in straight sets.

"It was good to play someone other than my brother," said Zuczek, who lives in Westerly. "It gave someone else a chance to be in the final, and it was nice not to play against someone I always practice with."

For the third straight year, Zuczek qualified for the Class S state tournament. He continued his progress of advancing one round further each year, this time making it to championship match, where he was beaten by No. 1 seed Jonathan Miller of Housatonic Regional.

Despite being disappointed in losing to Miller, Zuczek came out of the match with a positive approach.

"It shows that I have made progress in my game each year on the court," he said.

Tennis has always been Zuczek's passion. He is constantly working to make himself better and he credits his commitment and love to the game for his success.

"Tennis is my life, it's what I work for," Zuczek said. "My work ethic is what has brought me to the point I am at now."

His passion always comes out on the court. Whether celebrating or in distress, Zuczek is vocal and visibly emotional in how he performs. Two examples came in the state tournament. He, in his own words, "showed off" his skills by returning three balls between his legs while running back during his semifinal match. In the final, he visibly showed his frustration and admits letting Miller get into his head.

Zuczek will work to harness some of those negative emotions next season, when he hopes to add the only thing missing from a long list of accomplishments, a state title, in his final season.

a.turner@theday.com

The Day's 2016 All-Area Boys' Tennis Team

Player of the Year - Alex Zuczek (St. Bernard)

Singles

Camiren Carter (Waterford)

Mike Gianakos (Waterford)

Jacob Stiger (Stonington)

Brendan White (Old Lyme)

Eric Wu (East Lyme)

Doubles

Mukesh Kurumbail-Davon Chen (East Lyme)

Evan Burdsall-Dylan Vitale (Waterford)

Ethan Fenton-Austin Pilgrim (Old Lyme)