Ohio Tennis Coaches Association State Tournament Highlights
The Ohio Tennis Coaches Association state tournament, held at the College of Wooster, concluded on May 31, highlighting both triumphs and challenges for local teams. Just a day after securing two OHSAA state titles, the Columbus Academy and New Albany boys tennis teams faced tough competition but ultimately secured third-place finishes in their respective divisions.
Division Highlights
In the understated yet competitive Division I, New Albany, boasting a record of 14-4, fell short against Mason in the semifinals with a close score of 3-2. However, they made a strong comeback in the third-place match, besting Toledo St. John’s decisively with a score of 3-0.
Meanwhile, in Division II, Columbus Academy, which had an impressive season record of 19-1, also experienced a semifinal defeat against Cincinnati Indian Hill by a narrow margin of 3-2, but they rebounded flawlessly to shut out Lexington with a 3-0 victory in their last match.
Key Performances
New Albany’s success was largely attributed to exceptional performances by senior Abhinav Dandu and junior Tyler Thomas, both of whom notched two victories on the decisive day. Dandu, who had previously partnered with Jackson Clements to claim the Division I doubles title the day prior, exhibited dominance on the singles courts, defeating Mason’s Sean Fu and Toledo St. John’s Miles Green, both with a score of 6-1, 6-1. Thomas mirrored this success, overpowering Mason’s Leo Qin and St. John’s Adam Darwich without dropping a set.
However, Clements faced a challenge in his matchup against Mason’s singles champion Greg Bernadsky, losing 6-1, 6-4. The challenges continued for the first doubles pair of juniors Jackson Goodman and Erik Jacoby, who were bested by Mason’s duo of Janek Teply and Daniel Tonkal. Clements later redeemed himself by defeating St. John’s Nathan Tam 6-1, 6-0.
This tournament marked the second time in three seasons New Albany has achieved third place, adding to their tally of fourth place finishes since 2016, as the team continues its pursuit of an elusive championship.
Columbus Academy’s Performance
Columbus Academy’s formidable performance on the doubles courts was a sight to behold, as they swept through against Lexington and found success against Indian Hill in the second doubles. The sophomore duo of Jayden Tsao and Sujay Billakanty achieved a notable victory by overcoming Indian Hill’s Eli Camp and Yousef Moussa in a tightly contested match, wrapping it up 7-6, 6-4. On the singles side, senior Jacob Khvalsky maintained his strong performance as a state singles qualifier, triumphing over Neil Roy with a swift 6-0, 6-1 win.
However, not every match resulted in victory for the Vikings. Junior Nason Lo, who had previously claimed the Division II state singles title, faced a setback, losing to Neelan Gandhi in his first singles matchup. The first doubles pairing of Ian Chang and Rowen Lo also encountered difficulty, losing in a tightly fought battle.
Conclusion
As Columbus Academy wrapped up their season in high spirits, they continued to solidify their reputation by finishing third in four of the last five OTCA state tournaments, a testament to their consistent performance, aside from Bexley representing the area last year.
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