Six weeks is all they have.
The boys tennis season is going by as quickly as an Andy Roddick serve, so let’s take a quick look at the three Bloomington-area teams heading into the 2024 season, which concludes with the start of the Bloomington North Sectional on Oct. 1, which also includes Brown County and Owen Valley:
Bloomington North
HEAD COACH: Ken Hydinger, season 17. RETURNING STARTERS: Brady Murphy, So. (singles); Esteban Crespo, Sr. (doubles); Ben Konisky, So. (doubles).
OUTLOOK: Graduation has taken the top singles and doubles spots, so there’s a little rebuilding in the works, but Hydinger seems to have a lot of competition for those spots. Murphy (who missed the opening match) will take the top spot, while Crespo, Konisky and freshman Devin Chopra will battle for the singles spots. “Brady has worked very hard and played in a lot of tournaments,” Hydinger said. “He’s improved his game a lot. It looks like he’s got that spot. Chopra is a very experienced freshman coming in, and he’ll be able to be competitive right out of the gate. Ben is a strong player, and Estebon is one of the more talented players on the team. He has a good feel. I have four really good singles players and one of them might play doubles, so it’s a work in progress.”
The opening match featured seniors Krishil Patel, who took a sectional spot last year when Brady was injured, and Leo Yonkman as the No. 1 doubles and juniors Ramsey Mills and Hersh Patel as the No. 2 doubles. Others Hydinger said to keep an eye on include senior Aiden Shinn, juniors Aiken Urbanski, Kelton O’Connell and Chris Estivill and sophomore Noah Johnson. “I’m sure it’s a competitive situation,” Hydinger said. “They can all play well, it’s about who can keep their cool in tough situations. It’s about figuring out how the guys measure up and compete. A lot of them don’t have experience on a varsity team.”
Bloomington South
HEAD COACH: Matt Corry, season 9. RETURNING STARTERS: David Ciucu, Sr. (singles); Alex Busch, Jr. (singles); Josh Sang, Jr. (doubles); Abe Corry, So. (doubles); William Liao, So. (doubles).
OUTLOOK: The defending sectional champions have a strong core of returning players, but the final lineup may look quite different than last year. The Panthers have some depth this year, so Corry will have a chance to try out different combinations. Earlier in the year, Ciucu and Busch were paired into a top-tier No. 1 doubles team, while Corry was paired with Sang and Liao at No. 2 doubles. The singles lineup will be led by freshman Caleb Lian, the younger brother of former Panther star Chris. He has spent some time in the program and is a tough competitor, Corry said. Junior Silas Ellett was No. 3 singles. Junior Connor Couch, who spent some time on the first team last year and has also improved, is hoping for a spot in the lineup.
“They’ve continued to work on their games all year,” Corry said. “So I’m excited to try some of them out in doubles and some in singles to be ready for the demands of the team. Players can get stuck in their positions from year to year, but things change.” Corry knows this all too well, as his lineup was constantly upended by injuries last year, but they persevered and won a sectional title. “We’re lucky to have eight players,” he said. “It’s a short season, but it seems like you’re always trying to get over the finish line with injuries. I’m excited about the depth we have.”
Edgewood
HEAD COACH: John Kerr, season 2. RETURNING STARTERS: Andrew Paul, Jr. (singles); Jaylin Luedemann, Sr. (doubles); Dane Weisner, Sr. (doubles).
OUTLOOK: In total, six seniors lead a group of 13 players, including five freshmen. Paul was ranked No. 1 in singles last year and finished the season with a postseason win that earned him a spot in the singles tournament after Edgewood was eliminated. He will be one of the county’s best players again. Weisner was part of the top doubles team last year but started this year as No. 2 in singles, while Luedemann played two doubles and moves up to the top team, paired with senior Cam Abel. Senior Austin Nunn started as No. 3 in singles and the No. 2 doubles team consisted of senior Carter Walker and freshman Ryne Klinger.
