Stevenson ices foes at Deerfield quad
It is National Hockey League playoff time and that means men on skates are giving their razors an extended break.
Stevenson sophomore Andrew Komarov, a No. 1 doubles player in tennis, is an avid pro hockey fan who would like nothing more than to grow a beard.
But he admitted at Saturday’s Deerfield boys tennis quad that such a look would take a while to surface.
People might start noticing a Komarov whisker — or two — at next year’s NHL All-Star Game.
“I’m going to let my hair grow out instead,” a shaggy Komarov said after teaming with Patriots freshman Colin Harvey to go 3-0 at No. 1 doubles. “I haven’t had a haircut since February.
“I’m thinking about not getting it cut until after the season.”
The situation Komarov and Harvey found themselves in near the end of the second set of their match against Deerfield was, well, hairy.
Heavy-metal-band-convention hairy.
They trailed Toby Ma/Jack Kasbeer 6-1, 4-1 in their final match Saturday.
“At that point we started ripping shots,” recalled Komarov. “We also started believing.”
Komarov/Harvey, who had defeated pairs from Lake Forest and Fremd in straight sets earlier Saturday, won five of the next seven games to force a second-set tiebreaker against Deerfield’s duo. The Pats took the breaker 8-6 and downed Ma/Kasbeer 10-7 in a super tiebreaker (in lieu of a third set) to net their most satisfying victory to date.
“Mental toughness was a big key,” Harvey said. “We also worked hard and ran down every ball. After getting so far behind, we decided to go for shots.
“We had nothing to lose.”
Coach Tom Stanhope’s Patriots defeated Deerfield 5-2 to cap their 3-0 day. Stevenson also beat Lake Forest 4-3 and Fremd 4-3.
LF finished with a 2-1 record at the quad. The host school went 1-2, and two of Fremd’s three losses were 4-3 setbacks.
“All of our guys are thirsty for success,” said Stanhope, whose top tandem a year ago, then seniors David Packowitz and Ross Putterman, captured the state doubles championship in May. “David and Ross were great players for us, and the thinking out there is that we’re down this year. Our guys don’t think so. They feel they have something to prove and they’re excited about getting those opportunities.”
Stevenson’s top singles player, junior Jeremy Bush, split two matches at No. 1 singles and joined senior Dylan Goll to post a No. 2 doubles victory against Fremd. His only loss (6-1, 6-2) Saturday was to Deerfield senior and Yale-bound Jason Brown, third at state in singles in each of the last two seasons. The reigning North Suburban Conference No. 1 singles champ solved Lake Forest sophomore Peter Tarwid 6-4, 6-4 in a rematch of last spring’s No. 1 singles title match at the NSC meet.
“Our team atmosphere is amazing,” said Bush. “We’re all really close and everybody has a lot of potential to do well.
“Andrew and Colin at No. 1 doubles,” he added, “are getting it done. They have that attitude you need in doubles, that intensity. They communicate well and they’re vocal during matches.”
Stevenson’s other victors against Deerfield were senior Brian Kim (No. 2 singles), Mitch Newman (No. 3 singles), Goll/Alex Bacalar (No. 3 doubles) and Michael Sims/Dennis Kontorovich (No. 4 doubles). Pats junior Pawel Jaworski paired with freshman Adam Maryniuk for a win at No. 2 doubles against LF and a triumph at No. 3 doubles against Fremd. Stevenson’s Dylan Buchweitz/Alex Cyrus and Cory Dickstein/Miles Manion each won a match at No. 4 doubles.
Fremd swept the three singles matches in its 4-3 loss to Stevenson. Vikings senior Nick Makowiecki (No. 1) and junior Maciej Niemcyzk (No. 2) each won in straight sets, while sophomore Eric Pohl breezed to a 10-1 decision in a super tiebreaker after splitting sets at No. 3.
Fremd received doubles wins from Erik Rosencrans/Sudeer Vundru (No. 2) in the dual with Deerfield and Jack Finis/Jinwoo Oak (No. 3) and Kiran Devaraj/Andrew Jeong (No. 4) in the dual with LF.
“I like our depth and we’re quite strong in singles,” said Fremd coach Matt Duncan. “(Makowiecki) is tough, a very good all-court player. His second serve is blazing; he likes to go for it. (Niemcyzk’s) shots have a lot of pop.”
Dinks: Corky Leighton coaches Lake Forest’s boys tennis team. His son, Josh Leighton, coaches Deerfield’s squad. Dad’s crew edged his son’s team 4-3 on Saturday. … Stevenson coach Tom Stanhope and Fremd coach Matt Duncan each played tennis at Prospect.
Quote-worthy: “They out-emotioned us.” – Deerfield coach Josh Leighton after Stevenson’s No. 1 duo of Andrew Komarov/Colin Harvey overcame a 6-1, 4-1 deficit to stun Deerfield’s Toby Ma/Jack Kasbeer 1-6, 7-6 (6), 10-7 (super tiebreaker) at Saturday’s Deerfield quad.