Warsaw senior Sam Rice will compete Saturday in the regional round for No. 1 players at LaPorte (File photo by Mike Deak)

WARSAW – Sam Rice’s timing could not be better.

The Warsaw ace is playing his best tennis of his senior season since postseason play commenced.

Rice will look to extend his postseason run and final prep campaign Saturday as the Tigers’ No. 1 singles player competes in the LaPorte Regional.

Rice, who is 4-0 since the state tournament series began, will face Wheeler senior  Jack Hibbard in a semifinal match Saturday at Kesling Park in LaPorte at 11 a.m. (EST).

“By far, Sam is playing the best he has all year,” said Warsaw tennis coach Rick Orban in a phone interview Wednesday night. “His confidence is up and he’s excited about Saturday.”

Rice earned his spot in the regional round for No. 1 singles players who are undefeated in the state tournament with a pair of wins last week at Culver Academies. Rice defeated Plymouth’s John Hunter 6-0, 7-6 (7-4) as the Tigers lost 3-2 to the Pilgrims in a team regional semifinal match Oct. 7. Hunter had beaten Rice twice during the regular season, including in the title match of the NLC Tournament. Rice then beat Triton senior Jared Fisher 6-0, 6-1 Oct. 8 to earn a berth in the regional. He also posted wins by scores of 6-2, 6-0 and 6-0, 6-0 in the Warsaw Sectional won by the Tigers.

Orban has seen Rice, who was playing outstanding tennis at the end of last season when the Tigers lost to Penn in the semi state, find his groove the last few weeks.

“His power game is back with control and he’s playing smart tennis and being patient when he needs to be,” Orban said. “It was his own errors and double faults that kept him from having a great season this year. He listened and realized that and now he’s playing smarter and more confident.”

Rice takes a 14-7 season mark into Saturday’s semifinal match. Hibbard is 19-1 on the season for Wheeler. The other semifinal pits Andrean senior Michael Kinasiewicz, who is 6-5, versus Angola senior Craig Nafziger, who is 22-3.

The semifinal winners square off at LaPorte Saturday at 3 p.m. (EST) for a spot at the State Finals Oct. 24-25 at Park Tudor High School in Indianapolis.

“We’ve been working indoors a lot with all the rain and preparing for the type of game we expect from Sam’s opponent on Saturday,” noted Orban. “The key is for Sam to play his game. It’s also important for him to get off to a fast start.

“If Sam truly plays the way he can, he can win both matches Saturday. He knows he can go a long way.”

The competition at LaPorte Saturday will also feature Plymouth’s outstanding No. 1 doubles team. Seniors Ryan Johnson and Max Holloway, who are 25-1 this season, will face Valparaiso seniors Andrew Lehnen and Alexander Yiankes (22-6) in a semifinal match also set for 11 a.m. (EST).

The other No. 1 doubles regional match Saturday at Kesling Park will have the Munster team of senior Alex Wisniewski and sophomore Adam Richter versus the Westview duo of juniors Andrew Yoder and Zachary Schrock.

The two doubles semifinal winners will then meet Saturday at 3 p.m. (EST) for their spot in the State Finals Oct. 24-25 at Park Tudor High School in Indianapolis.