Friday, May 25, 2001
State tennis tourney begins today
Twenty-two area players competing
By Mark Schmetzer
Enquirer contributor
Kevin Teufel's track record shows he rises to the level of his competition. That could bode well for the Princeton senior's chances in the Division I state tennis tournament, which is scheduled to start this morning and conclude Saturday at Ohio State University's Stickney Tennis Center in Columbus.
Teufel leads 22 Cincinnati-area tennis players, a school-record six from Indian Hill, competing in the Division I and II tournaments. Teufel, who opened the season as the Vikings' No. 1 singles player before losing the spot to sophomore Wil Lofgren, regained his form in the tournament. Last weekend he knocked off previously undefeated Rob Altenau of Elder to win the district championship and earn one of the state tournament's top four seeds.
“At the beginning of the year, I was undefeated playing No. 1,” Teufel said. “Wil was out (playing non-school tournaments) for the first part of the year. When he came back, we had a little challenge, and he beat me. I went to No. 2. I still felt like I was playing well, but I lost a couple of matches.
“Right now, I don't know what it is, but I feel like I'm playing at a different level. I'm focused, and I'm hitting the ball well.”
Teufel, who is scheduled to play Chardon freshman David Rozek, is at the other end of the 16-player bracket from Grafton Midview senior Derrick Spice, the defending champion. Also in the tournament is Medina junior Patrick Thompson, who was part of the title-winning doubles team last season.
“The way Kevin plays, it doesn't matter who's there,” Princeton coach Bob Caress said. “He's got one basic style of play — he guts out every point. He runs down every ball, he hits every ball with good depth and, for the most part, he capitalizes on every solid opportunity. He plays really, really smart, and that counts for a lot.”
The Walnut Hills team of sophomore Eric Thomas, who finished fourth in singles last season, and senior Jonathan Khoury is scheduled to open against the Massillon Jackson team of seniors Nick Ciapetta and Jonathon Kelley, which finished fifth in the Rocky River sectional. Khoury and Thomas might have to get by St. Xavier juniors Andy Bartish and Scott Gerdes in the semifinals to reach the finals.
Consistency, especially with their groundstrokes, is the strongest part of the Walnut Hills team's game.
“I think Eric and Jon are two of the best players in the state at returning serves,” Walnut Hills coach Chris Hemingway said. “Anything served to them comes back just as hard.”
Indian Hill has two singles players and two doubles teams in the Division II tournament, led by the district-championship doubles team of junior Mike Compton and his freshman brother, Brian.
“We think that if we play good, sound doubles, that you can beat anybody,” Indian Hill coach Adam Wolter said. “It's a matter of executing well. Doubles is such a precise game. We have a lot of confidence in the Compton brothers. They're taking it seriously and have worked hard on being a team — and we like their draw. They have a couple of tests.”
But they aren't likely to encounter their biggest test until the semifinals. Last year's runnersup, juniors Zack Fayne and Brian Steginsky, and the team of senior Michael Herrick and junior Jake Dowdell from Elyria Catholic are in the other half of the draw.
Another set of Indian Hill brothers, senior Ryan McCarthy and freshman Mike, both are in the Division II singles lower bracket. Ryan McCarthy finished fourth last season after losing the third-place match to Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy's Jason Zimmerman. The CHCA senior, who lost to eventual state-champion Michael Rubin in last year's semifinals, could face Rubin's brother, Canton Central Catholic senior Carey, in this year's semifinals.
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State tennis tourney begins today