23rd Annual Singles & 13th
Annual Doubles
IHSAA Boys Tennis Tournament Series
October 25-26,
2002, Five Seasons Sports Country Club, Indianapolis
St. Joseph’s Keckley, North Central’s Hollander and Valinetz
Capture Tennis Titles
South
Bend St. Joseph’s Ryan Keckley and the North Central
doubles team of Ryan Hollander and Adam Valinetz were
crowned state champions after winning their respective tournaments on October
26, 2002 at Five Seasons Sports Country Club in Indianapolis.
Keckley completed a perfect 26-0 season (10-0 tournament) with
a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Kokomo senior Matt Zollman in
the championship match of the IHSAA state tournament for No. 1 singles players.
The senior becomes the first St. Joseph’s player to win the state singles
tournament and the first to play in the title match since Chris Varga finished as the runner-up in 1997. Zollman, who finished 27-2, was the first Kokomo player to
make it to the final round. This year’s match for all the marbles was a repeat
of last year’s consolation match which Keckley also
won 6-2, 6-3.
Keckley, who received a bye into the semifinals after
leading his team to a state runner-up finish one week ago, earned his spot in
the championship contest following an impressive 6-0, 6-0 victory over
defending state champion and previously unbeaten Tom Murphy of Indianapolis
Cathedral. The Keckley-Murphy meeting was a rematch
of last year’s semifinal in which Murphy won, 6-3, 6-4, and went on to win
capture the state title. Zollman was the third piece
to last year’s semifinal puzzle falling in the semis and settled for fourth
place a year ago.
This
season, Murphy (25-1) took third place defeating Silver Creek’s Brandon Lenfert in the consolation match, 4-6, 6-1, 7-5. Lenfert suffered his only two
setbacks of the year on Saturday, falling to Zollman
in the other semifinal match, 6-4, 0-6, 6-3, to wind up 27-2.
In
doubles, Hollander and Valinetz took a straight set
victory from Park Tudor’s Ryan Gershman and Jon Lee,
7-5, 6-0, in the championship competition to finish 26-1, including 8-0 in the
post-season.
It
was the North Central duo’s third victory in three meetings this season between
the neighboring schools’ top doubles teams. Gershman
and Lee, who helped lead Park Tudor to the team championship last weekend at
No. 1 doubles and earned a bye into the semifinals, concluded a 21-3 campaign.
Hollander
and Valinetz also became the fifth North Central team
to win the doubles tournament and first in seven years. They won a three-set
match over the previously undefeated Delta team of Patrick Bryan and Alan
Robinson, 6-2, 4-6, 6-1 for a spot in the final. Gershman
and Lee tallied a 6-4, 6-4 triumph over Lowell seniors Justin Bales and Ryan Brown
in the other semi.
The
Delta team won the match for third place over Lowell, 7-6 (7-4), 7-5.
Friday’s
quarterfinal matches were forced indoors to due steady rain throughout the day.
Saturday’s semifinal round matches, though never threatened by rain, were
delayed by over an hour due to moisture on the courts. The championship matches
began at approximately 2:30 p.m.
STATE TOURNAMENT
RESULTS
Records listed for each
player/team below indicate their regular season record followed by their
post-season tournament record. Add the two together for their overall season
record.
SINGLES
Friday
Quarterfinal Round
1. Thomas Murphy (12), Indpls. Cathedral (16-0, 8-0) def.
Pete Trgovich (11), Andrean (14-2, 7-1), 6-0, 6-1.
2. Matt Zollman (12),
Kokomo (20-1, 6-0) def. Chad Hathaway (12), Carroll (Fort Wayne) (18-2, 7-1), 6-2, 6-1.
3. Brandon Lenfert
(12), Silver Creek (21-0, 6-0) def. Chris Beesley
(11), Washington (19-1, 6-1), 6-2, 6-2.
Saturday
Semifinal Round
4. Ryan Keckley
(12),
5. Matt Zollman
(12),
Saturday
Final Round
Consolation: * Thomas Murphy (12), Indpls. Cathedral (16-0, 9-1) def. Brandon Lenfert (12), Silver Creek (21-0, 6-2), 4-6, 6-1, 7-5.
Championship: Ryan Keckley
(12), South Bend St. Joseph’s (16-0,
10-0) def. Matt Zollman
(12), Kokomo (20-1, 7-1), 6-3, 6-1.
* Defending state champion
DOUBLES
Friday
Quarterfinal Round
1. Justin Bales (12) / Ryan Brown (12), Lowell (21-1, 6-0) def. Kirk Dodson (11) /
2. Ryan Hollander (12) /
Adam Valinetz (11), North Central (Indpls.) (18-1, 6-0) def. Bradley Goldsberry
(12) / Michael Turner (12), Lebanon
(15-3, 6-1), 6-1, 6-0.
Saturday
Semifinal Round
3. Ryan Gershman (11)
/ Jon Lee (12), Park Tudor (12-2, 9-0)
def. Justin Bales (12) / Ryan Brown
(12), Lowell (21-1, 6-1), 6-4, 6-4.
4. Ryan Hollander (12) / Adam
Valinetz (11), North
Central (Indpls.) (18-1, 7-0) def. Alan Robinson (12) / Patrick Bryan
(12), Delta (22-0, 6-1), 6-2, 4-6, 6-1.
Saturday
Final Results
Consolation: Alan Robinson (12) /
Patrick Bryan (12), Delta (22-0, 7-1)
def. Justin Bales (12) / Ryan Brown
(12), Lowell (21-1, 6-2), 7-6 (7-4), 7-5.
Championship: Ryan Hollander (12) / Adam
Valinetz (11), North
Central (Indpls.) (18-1, 8-0) def. Ryan Gershman
(11) / Jon Lee (12), Park Tudor
(12-2, 9-1), 7-5, 6-0.