It's Huron Again at Division 1 Tennis Final
October 20, 2012
By Fred Kelly
Special to Second Half
MIDLAND — For Ann Arbor Huron, some of the faces were new. But the end result was the same at Saturday’s MHSAA Division 1 Tennis Final.
The River Rats reached finals in six of eight flights and won three flight championships en route to compiling 33 points and claiming their second straight team championship at the Midland Community Tennis Center.
Birmingham Brother Rice, last year’s runner-up, and Novi tied for second with 27 points apiece. Both the Warriors and Wildcats finished Friday’s opening day of competition with 22 points, only two behind Huron.
“Brother Rice and Novi did a good job getting 22 points yesterday, so we knew they were right on our heels, and we still had a lot of work to do coming into today,” River Rats’ coach Stefan Welch said. “(Our players) came out and executed. I’m just really happy for them.
“... It means a lot, obviously,” Welch added of winning back-to-back titles. “It’s hard to do it once, let alone twice. For the seniors, it’s nice to send them out on top. I’m really pleasantly surprised by how we performed this year. We had eight seniors leave last year’s lineup, so a lot of new faces stepped right in and performed.”
Huron junior Colin Williams said he felt his team had something to prove heading into the tournament.
“At the beginning of the year, we had a big target on our back, being defending champions,” said Williams, who won the No. 3 singles championship Saturday. “And then we played a dual match with Novi, and they beat us 6-2. They were in the spotlight then, but we felt like we didn’t play our best tennis that day, and we felt we were better than them.
“Today, we proved it,” he added. “We came out, we beat them, and we’re state champs now.”
Troy and Northville tied for fourth with 17 points each, while Traverse City Central was sixth with 14 points.
One of the individual highlights of the day was second-seeded Ed Covalschi of Utica Eisenhower upsetting top-seeded Tyler Gardiner of Northville 6-2, 7-5 in a hard-fought No. 1 singles final.
“It was definitely tough. I was a little tired from my semifinal, but it’s great to pull it off,” said Covalschi, who had to rally to beat sixth-seeded Brett Forman of Troy in three sets in the semifinals.
“He’s a great player,” Covalschi added of University of Michigan-bound Gardiner. “It was a great win. ... I picked up my serve a ton, and my returns were pretty good. Staying in long points really helped me; being patient (was the key).”
Covalschi, a senior who is headed to Notre Dame, said capping off an undefeated season with a No. 1 singles title was memorable.
“It’s unbelievable. It’s great to celebrate with my team,” he said. “My family supported me, and our fans supported me. I really appreciate it.”
Northville’s third-seeded freshman Connor Johnston finished his first Finals with a 6-1, 6-2 upset of top-seeded Jack Hamaty of Brother Rice in the No. 2 singles title match after rallying from a one-set deficit to beat second-seeded Kevin Mei of Huron in the semis.
“I was just being really aggressive, and I kept going at it the whole time. I never stopped,” said Johnston, adding of winning the match, “... I was speechless when it happened. I just dropped my racquet and screamed. I didn’t know what to do, honestly.”
Williams, who was seeded second at No. 3 singles, notched a straight-set victory over Brother Rice’s Chase Peery in the semifinals, and then swept Novi’s top-seeded Koushik Kondapi 6-3, 6-3 in the final. It was Williams’s first individual championship after two years of finishing as a runner-up.
“It feels great. ... To finally get the individual title after two years of losing in the finals is great. It’s really special,” said Williams, a runner-up at No. 3 doubles last year and at No. 4 doubles as a freshman.
At No. 4 singles, Novi’s top-seeded Pavan Rao breezed past Troy’s fifth-seeded Tarun Kalyanaraman in the semifinals, then swept Huron’s second-seeded Jon Seyhun 6-2, 6-2 in the final.
At No. 1 doubles, Huron’s third-seeded Akihiro Ota/Aaron Bradkey rallied to beat second-seeded Andrew Cansfield/Connor Johnston of Port Huron Northern in a three-set semifinal, then swept top-seeded Jason Carless/Andrew Ying of Novi in the final. At No. 2 doubles, second-seeded Max Teener/Ryan Stark of Huron beat third-seeded George Hamaty/Connor Parks of Brother Rice in the semifinals, then defeated top-seeded Nishant Kakar/Michael Chang of Novi 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 in the final.
At No. 3 doubles, top-seeded Joey Hildebrand/Johnny Cameron of Brother Rice defeated fourth-seeded Max Knoblock/Nick Yergens of Traverse City Central in the semifinals, then rallied to beat second-seeded George Lu/Michael Bondin of Huron 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 in the final. And at No. 4 doubles, top-seeded David Weatherford/Brendan Dillon of Brother Rice ousted fifth-seeded Trey Pezzetti/Yani Beeker of Traverse City Central in the semifinals, then swept third-seeded Austin Luker/Will Brenner of Huron 6-3, 6-3 in the final.
Ota, a junior at Huron who claimed his first flight championship, said it was satisfying to defend the team title.
“We have a big tradition to hold up, so we just practice hard every day, and we come up big at the right moments,” he said.
Asked if an individual or team title is more rewarding, Ota replied without hesitation, “The team (title), definitely. ... It’s high school tennis. It’s all about the team.”
PHOTO: (Top) Ann Arbor Huron celebrates its MHSAA team championship Saturday at the Midland Community Tennis Center. (Middle) Utica Eisenhower's Ed Covalschi won the individual No. 1 singles championship and finished this fall undefeated. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Dow Riding Record-Setting Regular Season Into Pursuit of 1st Finals Title Since 2016
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
September 28, 2022
The Midland Dow boys tennis team has one big goal this season:
Win the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 2 Finals title.
And the Chargers aren’t shying away from talking about it.
“That’s the goal from the beginning – that’s always the goal,” Dow senior Thomas Ladwein said. “Why would you ever shoot for something less when you know it’s achievable? Shoot for your highest goal possible.”
Dow is coming off a third-place finish at the 2021 Final, and returned nearly all of its lineup for this season.
That’s led to a No. 1 ranking in Division 2 and a 24–0-1 record, a program best for regular-season dual victories.
“Last year was really special. I don’t remember ever having a group of guys that exceeded expectations as much as they did,” Dow coach Terry Schwartzkopf said. “That told me a little something about their character, their psyche and grit. I had an inkling we could be something special (this year). I did not expect the camaraderie, the character, the drive and determination this team has shown all season. I didn’t realize it would be as amazing as it’s been.”
Schwartzkopf knows an amazing tennis team when he sees it. He’s coached Dow to six Finals titles, including five straight from 2009-13. The latest title came in 2016.
Every Dow team since 2008 – outside of 2020 when the team title was decided in a dual format – has finished in the top five at the Finals.
Upholding that tradition could create a lot of pressure for players wearing a Dow uniform, but they don’t see it that way.
“There’s not extra pressure, but there’s definitely a certain expectation where, ‘Oh, it’s Dow High, they’re supposed to be pretty good,’” Ladwein said. “I feel like, up until this year, we haven’t been that strong. But this year, we’re a force to be reckoned with. So maybe there’s more pressure this year. You’re forced to play at your peak every time, but it’s good practice.”
Schwartzkopf also has made sure the program’s past doesn’t weigh on the current players by incorporating it into the present. Several former players who played large roles as Dow built its elite status have come back to help out this current team.
“That’s the program I’ve strived to create, one of players leading players,” Schwartzkopf said. “One where there’s a family atmosphere, and the past, present and future are all connected. … We’re fighting to reclaim the history of those guys that have come back and worked with them.”
It’s not something current players take for granted.
“It’s definitely an inspiration,” sophomore No. 1 singles player Austin King said. “They come to practice with us and give us a lot of tips. They give us little pointers on what we can work on and what to do. They’ve been there and done it, and won a state title. It’s good hearing from them.”
The Chargers also have plenty of personal experience to draw upon as they enter the postseason, which begins with the Regional tournament on Oct. 5.
Nine of the 12 starters played in the 2021 Finals, led by Ladwein and Aaron Li, who were finalists at No. 1 doubles.
King is back at No. 1 singles, while Li has moved to No. 2 singles. Logan Yu (No. 3) and Nimai Patel (No. 4) round out the singles lineup and also have Finals experience.
Ladwein is now teamed with Boaz Qui, who played at No. 2 doubles a year ago. Qui’s former partner, Roofy Elsaadany, is now playing No. 2 doubles with Aiden Tanis, one of three players who did not play in the 2021 Finals.
The No. 3 doubles team of Vishagan Karthikeyan and Shubhan Nagarkar returns intact after advancing to the semifinals a year ago.
At No. 4 doubles are the other newcomers to the lineup, Konnor Janeczko and Dominic Griffin.
That experience, mixed with a schedule that’s featured all but one team in the Division 2 top 10 and several other ranked teams, should have the Chargers prepared for the stretch run. It certainly seems to have paid off to this point.
“I think these guys have like an 80-percent tiebreak record,” Schwartzkopf said. “They get pushed, and for the most part they have this ability to focus and finish.”
Being able to focus and finish now could mean bringing a seventh Finals title back to Dow.
“It would be awesome,” Ladwein said. “To be able to go out my senior year, without ever winning a title the last four years – to speak of it and always come close, it’s always kind of hanging over your head. So, to be able to go in my senior year and win it all, personally, I’d find more joy in accomplishing that.”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS (Top) No. 1 doubles pair Thomas Ladwein, left, and Boaz Qui are pumped up during a Dow match this season. (Middle) No. 3 doubles player Vishagan Karthikeyan returns a volley. (Photos courtesy of the Midland Dow boys tennis program.)