BOYS TENNIS: Hankins, Berries have early edge on Kings
· Yahoo Sports
The three top boys tennis players in the county all return this year and all three put in work during the offseason.
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Logansport junior Owen Hankins has the early edge as the top player but senior teammate Blake Pearson and Lewis Cass senior Liam Ellington are right on his heels as the season gets underway.
Hankins posted a 6-3, 6-7 (1-7), 6-2 win over Ellington on during the Berries’ 5-0 win over the Kings on Thursday at the LHS courts.
“I felt like I played a little bit too passive, but I still got the win,” Hankins said. “I could have played a little bit more aggressive.”
It was a match that went about two-and-a-half hours on an 80-degree and sunny evening.
Hankins dedicated himself to tennis over the offseason and now plays year around.
“I’ve gotten a lot better at the net, more consistent. Serve’s gotten better,” he said.
Hankins plays during the winter at the indoor courts in Greentown and he was handed a 7-5, 6-3 loss by Eastern junior Silas Flanary in the season opener on Tuesday on a night Eastern beat Logan 3-2.
“That kid’s good,” Hankins said. “It was a good match. He’s good.”
Ellington gave Hankins a run for his money utilizing gritty play and a big serve that got him a lot of aces. But his comeback effort came up short.
“It could have been way better. But first match of the season, I’ll bounce back,” Ellington said.
Two years ago Ellington went 20-2 as a sophomore at No. 3 singles on a sectional champion Lewis Cass team. Last year he bumped up to No. 1 singles and was still able to go 16-5.
“It’s definitely rough going from 3 singles to 1, but I did pretty good for my first year at 1 singles,” he said.
His goal for this year is to post a better record than last.
“Not lose four. Just try to beat my last year record and hopefully get a sectional win,” he said.
Pearson was the Pharos-Tribune’s Boys Tennis Player of the Year last year after he went 13-9 at No. 1 singles and advanced to the regional played at Indianapolis North Central High School.
He’s 2-0 at No. 2 singles this year and has a goal of going undefeated if he stays at that spot. But he’d like to take back the No. 1 spot if he can beat Hankins in a challenge match.
“We practiced a lot together over the break and he’s gotten a lot better,” Pearson said. “Both of our play styles, they collide pretty well and he just finally got me this year. Obviously I'm still trying to get better every single day and we’re gonna have another challenge match here soon, so hopefully I can get him next time.”
Pearson also plays baseball and said he splits his time and focus pretty evenly between the two sports. He was the Berries’ starting left fielder last spring and hit .301 and was third on the team in RBIs and runs scored and led in doubles.
In tennis the Berries went 10-8 and finished sectional runner-up to Twin Lakes a year ago.
“For the team we want a sectional win and to go on after sectionals,” Pearson said. “It’s been the goal for three years now. We’ll definitely have a good chance.
“I would say we are the favorite in the sectional this year with Twin Lakes losing their 1.”
The Kings went 8-12 last year after losing five of their seven starters from their first ever sectional championship team. They played the Berries very close in two of the five matches Thursday and will need to find another spot they can narrow the gap in if they want to pull off an upset when the sectional rolls around near the start of October.
“I had a lot of kids nervous getting out there playing the first time, a lot of kids are first-time varsity players,” Cass coach Matt Hurst said. “But it was a competitive match and that’s what I wanted. We saw some good things and you use this match to see what you’ve got to work on in practice tomorrow.”
Logansport coach Travis Nolte said the competition for the No. 1 spot is a good sign for his team overall.
“We had a challenge match last week and Owen beat Blake for the 1 spot, but they’re neck and neck every time they challenge. They’re right there with each other," he said. "But it’s definitely a blessing to have those two push each other and not just get complacent. And we’ll usually try to have two or three challenges a year to see for spots. And so hopefully they continue to push each other. It’s a strong spot for our team.
“We’ve got juniors and seniors all across the board on the varsity, so we’re looking forward to just continuing to get better. We know we’re not gonna peak anytime soon, but hopefully we keep on elevating.”