For boys tennis, challenges have strengthened a young team turnin them into an elite team.
“The CSL conference format really showcased our team depth as we were able to play 11 kids at the various positions and almost come away with a clean sweep of all the flights,” said head coach Tad Eckert.
But the season is not over, and Eckert said that the team needs to play “with a greater sense of urgency and make sure that we are doing the right things in matches so that we are still capable of improving a few more notches before the end of May.”
Thus far, the team has had a successful season with a roster consisting mostly of younger talent. Among them is junior captain Alex Galoustian, who notched the #2 seed in the upcoming state tournament running May 23-25.
Galoustian has been pleased with progress of the tennis program. He says that he is “looking forward to the new players who will come up to varsity.”
Reflecting on his own experience to this point, he said that “every year has been different in many ways, but I enjoyed all of them. As one of the few juniors on our team, I have taken the responsibility as a leader.”
Eckert believes that Galoustian has had a “tremendous season and I think at this point is deserving of the #2 seed in the singles draw at State with a chance to win it all.”
Recently, the team won the CSL South Conference Tournament, giving the team a lot of confidence with the state tournament ahead. “We definitely have a good shot at placing top 3 at state. Our guys are really resilient and know how to grind out wins. It’ll be fun to see how well they perform,” said junior Joel Meyer.
Last year, the team finished second and two years before they placed first. But like any team, a top three finish, is not guaranteed. This team has met its match in many ways, but ultimately has shown a resiliency to stick with it.
The toughest opponent the team faced was Hinsdale Central. “They had a dominant season with the potential to set a team points record at the state tournament. We played them in a home dual match and with a few breaks could have beaten them. We ended up losing 5-2 but all the matches except one were competitive. I was proud of our team’s effort and ability to stand up to the best team in the state in a great atmosphere,” said Eckert.
While the competition was tough, the team also battled internal challenges. Senior captain Chas Mayer said that the team has “faced a lot of adversity with people quitting the team, but everyone has stepped up their play and we have done a good job of proving to ourselves and other schools that were not going to let up.”
Through these struggles, the team has shown the ability to pull through.
Leading up to the big event, Eckert is doing everything he can to make sure his team is prepared. He says that he has “tried to work on is court positioning and winning strategies especially in doubles – since many of our players hadn’t really focused on that before.”
“We are seeing great strides toward playing top notch doubles and I think we can make a big splash at the state tournament,” he said.
Losing a dominant senior class last year, the program has focused developing their young players and making them leaders on the court. That formula has lead to a successful season to date, despite a lot of obstacles in their way.