Tigers Roll In NLC Tennis Opener
ELKHART – Warsaw boys tennis coach Rick Orban fully expected his team to win handily Thursday night.
His veteran-laden team did not disappoint him.
The Tigers rolled past host Elkhart Memorial 5-0 in the Northern Lakes Conference opener.
Warsaw, which improves to 3-1 overall, lost a total of just 11 games on the five varsity courts in cruising past the Crimson Chargers.
Memorial, under first-year coach Joe Rallo, drops to 0-3 on the young season. The Chargers, who finished 4-12 overall and 2-5 in the NLC a year ago, have also lost to South Bend Adams (3-2) and Jimtown (3-2).
The Tigers, coming off a 5-0 home win over Mishawaka Marian Monday night, were stellar in singles play.
Junior Colton Lind led the way at the top of the singles lineup for the Tigers. Lind topped Brandon Bailey 6-0, 6-0 at No. 1.
The senior duo of Andrew Gauger and David Homme completed the singles sweep for Warsaw. Gauger beat Mike Troyer 6-1, 6-1 at No. 2 and Homme stopped Chris Troyer 6-1, 6-1 at No. 3.
“I was extremely pleased with what I saw from our singles players tonight,” said Orban.
“Going into this match, I wanted to see how our guys would react. It’s not just about winning. It’s about playing good tennis and not getting into bad habits out there.”
Warsaw got a strong effort from its No. 2 doubles team of senior Hayden Steger and sophomore Spencer Britton. The duo topped Tryston Swartz and Dylan Lungren 6-2, 6-0.
“I was thrilled with how Hayden and Spencer played tonight,” remarked Orban. “They did everything they should have done.”
Warsaw completed the shutout as seniors Justin Stout and Ryan Wettschurack shook off a sluggish first set to prevail 6-4, 6-1 over Justin Walter and Brett Wilson.
“We were a little lethargic early at No. 1 doubles and we were playing their game,” said Orban. “But at 4-3, the guys picked it up and played their game from there and took care of it.”
The Tigers, whose lone loss was a 3-2 final at Penn last week, will be tested next week. Warsaw hosts NLC foes Goshen and Plymouth Tuesday and Thursday and plays at Culver Academy on Wednesday.
“We will see where we are at and what kind of season it’s going to be next week,” said Orban. “Trust me, we will talk about that at practice tomorrow. It’s up to our guys what kind of season they want it to be.”
Warsaw topped Memorial 8-2 in junior varsity action. Winning for the JV Tigers in singles play were Bailey Burt, Kyle Bartol, Brian Elliott and Nolan Knight. The Tigers also got wins from its doubles teams of Nick Marsh and Reuben Williams, Ethan Hoff and Caleb Williams, Brandon Chan and Jake Kauffman and Hawkins Ragland and Jarrett Orr.
Warsaw hosts Goshen Tuesday night. Memorial will compete in the Bremen Invitational on Saturday.