Doubles Deliver Ishpeming's 1st Boys Tennis Finals Title Since 1994
By
Alexandria Bournonville
Special for MHSAA.com
May 31, 2023
ISHPEMING — Through a rousing fight on neutral tennis courts at Westwood High School, Ishpeming won the MHSAA Upper Peninsula Division 2 Finals on Tuesday.
It capped off quite a rollercoaster of a season for these Hematites, who hadn’t won a U.P. title in the sport since 1994 when they competed in the Class C-D division. They hadn’t even been a U.P. runner-up since finishing second in Division 2 in 2004, just a couple of years after the U.P. split into numeric divisions for tennis.
On Tuesday, Ishpeming captured three flight championships, all in doubles, to score 12 points to 11 for runner-up Iron Mountain, which won only one flight but scored points in all but one of the rest.
Munising and West Iron County tied for third with nine points, while Menominee was a relatively close fifth with seven.
Each of the five schools present won at least one flight, with Munising – with two – the only other team to win multiple championships besides the Hematites.
But it proved to be Ishpeming’s day, though that came about almost completely through doubles.
“I feel amazing,” Ishpeming head coach Kaitlin Rich said. “I was watching the last match, and the kids came over with their arms pumped in the air and … I’m just really proud of them.
“This is something that really hasn’t happened in Ishpeming for the tennis program, and it just shows how dedicated these kids are to excellence.
“I have so many kids that are dual sporting. They play baseball and AAU (basketball), and to edge out Iron Mountain by one point? I’m just really proud of them.”
Rich had a relatively inexperienced team and thought it might’ve been too soon for her lineup to contend for the title.
“I have three seniors … one senior had never played before, and I’m really happy because our other two seniors are U.P. champions,” the coach said. “I’m really glad their last meet of the year they took the gold, and I’m really proud of them.
“We’ll have a very stocked team next year as well. … Hopefully, we can work a little bit in the summer and come back for another one next year.”
The Hematites scored 11 of their 12 points in doubles, winning championships at Nos. 2, 3 and 4 and finishing as runners-up at No. 1.
At No. 2, Logan Hurkmans and Ben Rubick scored a 6-1, 6-3 win in the championship match over Tanner Theurerkauf and Landon Daigneau of Menominee.
No. 3 proved to be one of the most competitive finals matches of the day, even though it went only two sets. Ishpeming’s Caden Luoma and Ryan Maki hung on for a 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-4) win over Munising’s duo of Mike Robinson II and Logan Walsh.
And No. 4 appeared to be more typical only by that standard set at No. 3 as the Hematites’ Griffin Argall and Ethan Corp won 6-1, 6-4 in the final over West Iron’s Dominick Brunswick and Jackson Secord.
The only doubles flight not won by Ishpeming still proved important to its team title as the Hematites’ Hayden Hares and Hunter Smith picked up two points for reaching the finals as they lost in another close match to Munising’s Carson Kienitz and Kane Nebel, 6-7 (2-7), 6-2, 6-3.
“Hayden Hares had a little accident (last) weekend,” Rich said. “He had a gash (over the whole) bottom of his foot … but he played it out.”
And also just as important to the Hematites’ success was No. 4 singles player Tramon Gauthier winning his first-round match 6-0, 6-0.
That win gave Ishpeming its one final point to push it over the top.
“We knew the numbers coming in (to the finals) were going to be really tight between us, Iron Mountain, Munising, West Iron,” Rich said. “I told my singles players we need one point somewhere, we need one point and Tramon Gauthier stepped it up and he won his first-round match.
“That sealed it for us, and I couldn’t be prouder of him specifically, too.”
Gauthier advanced to face eventual No. 4 singles champion Zander Birmingham of West Iron in the semifinals, where Birmingham prevailed 6-3, 6-2 before going on to defeat Iron Mountain’s Colin Schneider in the final, 6-4, 6-4, to give the Wykons their lone flight championship of the day.
Iron Mountain picked up its flight title at No. 2 singles, where Kaden Sheldon pulled off a 1-6, 6-4, 6-2 comeback against Menominee’s Danny Birch in the final.
“It just wasn’t enough team-wise for us to come away (with the team title), but I’m really happy for Kaden, he was our one first-place finish for the whole day,” Mountaineers coach Marcus Celello said. “Overall, we finished second and I’m really proud of the guys for that.
“We only won one dual match during the (regular) season, but we had a lot of tough opponents and we split with Ishpeming. We knew that we were going to be right there with them at the end of the day, and it came right down literally to the final match.
“We’ve come a long way. Our singles have been pretty strong all season, but our doubles teams really were a work in progress, and today they showed up and obviously we finished ... a little short, but all the guys improved so much from the beginning of the season.
“We lost to a really good Ishpeming team, and I’m really happy for them.”
Iron Mountain added a pair of runner-up finishes, and just as importantly, got through the first round at four other flights to ring up its 11 points.
Munising’s two titlists came at No. 1 doubles, with Kienitz and Nebel winning, and at No. 3 singles, where Ashton Wymer could make a case for the best championship match of the day when he defeated West Iron’s Drew Alexa 6-2, 6-7 (2-7), 6-3.
“I’m happy with how our guys competed, and I think the program’s in good standing going forward,” said Mustangs head coach Noah Ackerman, himself a Munising tennis star not quite a full decade ago. “That was my goal, taking over, was hopefully we can get (our) foot in the door, get back into competing for U.P.s.”
West Iron’s champion was Birmingham as the Wykons had a pair of runner-up finishes and Munising had one as well.
For Menominee, No. 1 singles player Brock Murphy picked up the Maroons’ flight championship with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Iron Mountain’s Reece Kangas. In fact, Murphy never lost a game all day, as after receiving a bye in the first round, he also posted a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Munising’s Danny Goss in the semifinals.
Menominee also had a pair of runner-up finishes.
PHOTOS (Top) Ishpeming's Hayden Hares returns a volley at No. 1 doubles during Tuesday’s UP Division 2 Finals at Westwood. (Middle) Munising’s Carson Kienitz returns a shot during a No. 1 doubles match. (Below) Menominee’s Danny Birch chases down a shot at No. 2 singles. (Photos by Alexandria Bournonville.)
Allegan Earns 1st Title, Hackett 1st Since 2005
October 20, 2019
By Greg Chrapek
Special for Second Half
HOLLAND – After chasing an elusive MHSAA Finals tennis championship for years, what would a few more hours waiting matter for the Allegan boys tennis team?
With all but the No. 3 singles semifinals and final completed Saturday afternoon at the Lower Peninsula Division 4 Finals at Hope College, Allegan and Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep were tied for first place with 21 total team points apiece. The No. 3 singles semifinals were moved to the evening, with a match between Hackett and Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard set to determine if Hackett won the title outright or shared with Allegan.
For some six to seven hours Saturday afternoon, the Tigers had to anxiously wait for their fate to be determined by a pair of players from a team other than their own. The coaches kept the team busy with lunch and a trip to the BAM! Entertainment Center, where the team played laser tag to burn off the nervous energy.
While the coaching staff kept the team occupied, the anxiety was still prevalent.
“It was very high stress,” said Walker Michaels, one of five seniors on the team. “It was a lot of stress waiting all day to find out if we would win a state championship or not.”
Allegan’s nerve level was heightened considerably shortly after the semifinals began. After Hackett jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first set, Gabriel Richard senior Rafid Farjo quickly became Allegan’s favorite tennis player not wearing orange and black when he battled back to win the first set. Farjo then made every Allegan tennis player’s dream come true when he won the second set, sending him into the final at No. 3 singles and Allegan to the victory stand where the Tigers shared the team championship trophy with the Hackett team that it previously defeated for the Regional championship.
“This is the first time that Allegan has won a state tennis title, boys or girls,” said Allegan co-coach Seth Arthur. “These guys have worked their tails off. They’ve played with the pressure of being number one in the state all year. To win the first tennis title in school history is an unbelievable feeling.”
For Allegan seniors Tim Lyon, Owen Clearwater, David Roark, Noah Festerling and Michaels, the wait was more than worth it.
“This was everything we worked for and dreamed of,” Lyon said. “All the hard work and every practice paid off.”
“Winning the first-ever state title is very exciting,” Clearwater said. “It’s a blessing to be a part of this and to be a part of Allegan High School.”
Winning required a total-team effort. Freshman Eli Festerling was Allegan’s lone flight champion as he captured the title at No. 4 singles.
“I knew it was going to be really hard,” Festerling said. “I played (finalist Gerry Sherer of Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett) earlier this year, and he has become a lot better. He was a lot more confident, and I was not prepared for that in the first set. I kept the pace up, and that made the difference for me.”
Kalamazoo Hackett earned a share of the Division 4 title without winning a flight championship. Instead, the Irish utilized the same formula that Allegan used as the total-team effort produced the needed points.
Hackett put a total of five flights into the semifinal round, with three flights reaching the finals. Jack Ford advanced at No. 2 singles, while Connor Cavanaugh and Anthony Toweson reached the finals at No. 2 doubles and Jack Gordon and Miklas Johansson reached the finals at No. 3 doubles.
“We have a pretty special team this year,” said Cavanaugh, a senior. “No one expected our team to win a state title. All of our hard work paid off. As a team we collectively put in the hard work, and all of that hard work paid off.”
The Finals title was the first won by Hackett since the Irish tied Grosse Ile for the Division 4 title in 2005.
This year’s Finals were a wide-open competition from the opening volley to the last serve. Liggett finished just one point behind Allegan and Hackett, while Gabriel Richard, Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian, Grand Rapids Catholic Central and Traverse City St. Francis all finished within five points of first place.
“There were just a lot of good teams spread out in Division 4 this year,” said Hackett coach Aaron Conroy. “We had a heck of a season. The guys worked real hard right from the start. It feels great to do it. The margin for error was very small, and we had everybody on the team step up.”
The parity in Division 4 was evident by the number of schools that won flight championships. Liggett was led by William Cooksey, who defeated Gabriel Richard’s Ian Sood at No. 1 singles for his third straight title at that flight. Gabriel Richard’s Tommy Heegan won the title at No. 2 singles, and St. Francis’ Cody Richards won at No. 3.
In doubles action, the St. Francis duo of senior Brendan Chouinard and sophomore Ben Schmude claimed the title at No. 1 doubles.
For Chouinard, it was the second-straight year he was part of a doubles champion.
“We came out with a lot of intensity,” Chouinard said. “We jumped out to a 5-0 lead and won that first set. We got down in the second set, but we picked it up and won it.”
Playing with a new partner in Schmude took a little getting used to, but once the duo became familiar with each other they took off this season.
“I knew that once we got used to playing together that no one would beat us,” Schmude said. “We do a good job of picking each other up when we get down.”
Like Allegan and Hackett, the Gladiators had to wait the long period Saturday afternoon to play in the other No. 3 semifinal.
“It was a long day,” said St. Francis coach Dane Fosgard prior to the conclusion. “We were up at 7 a.m. for breakfast, and the final match will be done around midnight. We’re used to it. We travel a lot. We came down here for a tournament at Hope College at the start of the season and played all day and slept on the courts at night. We will spend the night here. It’s fun for the team.”
A pair of Grand Rapids-area teams claimed the three other doubles championships. NorthPointe won both the Nos. 2 and No. 3 doubles titles. Elan Bosma and Derek Diepenhorst teamed up to win at No. 2, with Chase Berends and Sam Bradley winning at No. 3.
At No. 4 doubles, the Grand Rapids Catholic Central team of Cameron Beachler and Ben English came away with the title.
PHOTOS: (Top) Allegan celebrates its first MHSAA Finals tennis championship Saturday. (Middle) Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep’s Jack Ford is pleased after claiming a point during a No. 2 singles match. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)